Week Four: Genesis 1:14-19. The sun, moon, and stars were created. Go sky gazing.
By Caroline Camp, Duke Divinity School Intern
Photo: Redbuds against a Spring sky at Spring Forest
And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky 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 dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon 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.”
On the fourth day of creation, God created the sun, moon, and stars. With that act, God created our means of tracking days, staying warm, and feeling a sense of wonder when we look at the night sky. In most early cultures, the sun, moon, and stars were worshiped. They were given names, festivals, and sacrifices. The book of Genesis points to the One True God who created and controls the lights in the sky. Our modern culture has moved away from a constant awareness of their movements but they still play a huge role in our lives. The moon controls the tides, the stars help us navigate and understand the vastness of the galaxy and the sun warms our planet and causes things to grow.
In our day to day lives, it is easy to believe that we are no longer as dependent on those heavenly bodies and we believe we are less dependent on their creator. Electricity has reduced our need to pattern our days on the sun and moon’s movements. Our eyes have been pulled away from the wonder of the heavens into the distraction of flashing screens. We are less likely to consider the heavens as Psalm 8 suggests that we do. We are less likely to remember the glory of the God that created us, created the galaxy - and who called it good.
This fourth week of Lent, let the heavens remind you of God’s love and care. Read through Psalm 8 and take walks outside in sunshine and at night so that you can look up at the starry night sky.
We invite you to take a picture of your Lenten practice and post on social media. Tag us at #LentatSpringForest to see how the rest of the Spring Forest Community is interacting with Creation.