Sun and More and Stars Galore!
One of my favorite Bible songs to sing with my children when they were younger was the Days of Creation song. Many of you may recognize today’s title from the verse about Day 4: “Day 4, day, 4: Sun and moon and stars galore!”
At my school, we are gearing up for a very special day involving those elements of God’s universe. Quoting from the website GreatAmericanEclipse.com:
On August 21, 2017, millions of people across the United States will see nature’s most wondrous spectacle — a total eclipse of the Sun. It is a scene of unimaginable beauty; the Moon completely blocks the Sun, daytime becomes a deep twilight, and the Sun’s corona shimmers in the darkened sky. This is your guide to understand, prepare for, and view this rare celestial event.
I recently attended a training geared toward helping teachers incorporate this great event into the standards they are required to cover. There were amazing and creative ways to help even our youngest students gain knowledge from this event. One of my favorites involved our kindergarteners getting to chart the sun’s position at different times of the day on a panoramic photo of our actual school.
One thing stood out to me in this training that was probably not intended. The presenters kept talking about the rarity of this event and how many different elements have to be precisely in line for this to occur. The moon has to be at an exact distance from the earth in its orbit. The tilt must be perfect. The website I referenced above says it this way: “We on Earth occupy a celestial sweet spot to witness this sight.”
And yet, many of the online videos and scientific sites refer to coincidence. They seem amazed that the universe could randomly and yet perfectly align for this to happen. May I suggest that it’s because it wasn’t random and didn’t “just happen”?!
Design demands a designer and since they were very little, my children have known that the Designer, on Day 4, made the sun and moon and stars galore! To put it in God’s words from Genesis 1:14-19:
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
For the record, many of my public school coworkers agree with my sentiments. Parents, make sure your children do, too. I encourage you to look up this August 21, whether you are in the path of totality, as we in Cookeville are, or under the penumbra (partial eclipse). As you look up and view this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime event, remember the Designer who designed it and marvel at His works.
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” ~Psalm 19:1
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AUTHOR: Amber Tatum
