Courtney and I do our best every morning, to wake up early and begin our day with a walk. It’s a sweet time for us. A time to share our hearts in conversation and take a few minutes to spend in devotion with each other and God. Another thing we experience on these walks is the dark of the early morning and the sounds of insects, frogs, and birds awaking to life, as they feel the power of the sun soon to come.
It’s in this peaceful dark that we both usually take notice of the stars that blanket the sky.
They are stunningly bright and easy to see amongst the vast Texas landscape that goes on forever. The stars (unless covered by overheard clouds) are always present each morning and there are even a few that we’ve become accustomed to seeing by their varying brightness and position in the sky. There are three in particular that I think we both recognize almost immediately, the three that make up Orion’s belt, Mintaka, Alnilam, and Alnitak.
These stars appear about midway in the constellation ORION THE HUNTER. In Western Culture they have acclaimed legend as the, “Three Kings”. This title is in direct reference to the three kings in the bible who offered gifts to the baby Jesus shortly after his birth.
Whatever you would like to call these beautiful forms of light, there’s no denying that they’re always there, just as faithfully as the God who breathed them into being. I think because God is invisible to our eyes, we can sometimes forget this fact. Especially in those moments when we feel overwhelmed or alone in the world. In these instances, we often try and find our solutions or “fixes” within our own power and wisdom. Leaving out God’s will for our lives or even acknowledging that He is there with us, as present in our lives as the stars in the sky.
In the eighth century BC, a shepherd named Amos from Tekoa (a small town about ten miles from Jerusalem) was used by God to share HIS love with the oppressed and voiceless in the world. Amos was a prophet as well as a shepherd, but He never considered himself one, or from a family that birthed other prophets. Instead Amos found his connection to the simple life and the people therein, as his greatest ministry and purpose. He was invested in the lives of the people around him and he found many ways to direct them to God’s presence in their lives; even if for the most part they did not listen.
“The One who set the Pleiades and Orion in the heavens, who turns night’s shadow into morning and darkens the day with night, Who calls forth the waters of the sea to pour down rain and flood the earth—the Eternal One is His name…”
Amos 5:8 (VOICE)
You see, Amos found that God’s creation was evidence of His love for all of us. So even in hard times, when we feel far away from God…we can look at the beauty of His creation and know that He is near. His creation is also evidence that no matter what we face today, there will always be a tomorrow to look forward to. Another day for things to get better and another day for us to choose to fight against the negativity that’s ruling our world and trying to influence us.
We are loved by God and are safe in His most capable and devoted hands.
So the next time you look up into the dark sky and take in the light of the stars, be reminded that the hands that are holding the world, are also holding our hearts.
He is THE ONE. Trust Him.
