The deep blue of the night sky hung over me like a seamless piece of velvet as I dashed out to my car to get some tissue paper I had stashed in the trunk for my mother’s birthday the next day. As is my habit whenever I’m outside at night, I looked up at the stars on my way back to the house.
“We should go outside and look at the stars,” I said to my mom as I closed the front door behind me. I stowed the tissue paper away in my room and went back outside, sitting down on the porch swing and trying to peek out from beneath the awning. The patch of sky I could see showed only a few faint stars.
“Not that there are many to see,” I told her through the window screen. There weren’t as many stars out as I first thought, even though it was a fairly clear night. However, the cool evening air made me want to stay outside, so I stood on the porch and craned my neck to stare at the small light show the sky had to offer.
Standing there taking in the grandeur of the heavens, I tried to replicate in my own heart that feeling of smallness David had when he wrote these words:
“When I observe Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You set in place,
what is man that You remember him,
the son of man that You look after him?”
~Psalm 8:3 & 4
As I continued to gaze heavenward, pondering the fact that God knows the name of every star and yet cares personally about me, a wondrous thing happened. Another star appeared. Then another. And another. Before long, the formerly barren-looking sky was filled with faintly twinkling jewels. The longer I looked, the more stars appeared.
Even though it was only natural that I should see more as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, it surprised and awed me nonetheless, and I peered eagerly at the sky, waiting to see what new specks of light might appear next.
And then, as my soul adjusted to the quietness like my eyes had adjusted to the darkness, a nugget of spiritual truth unveiled itself to my heart. God and His Word are like the night sky, full of beauty and depth that are often hidden to those who will not take the time to stop and look up, to quiet themselves and let the pupils of their souls be opened wide to the wonders that are waiting to be found.
Many times we go to the Bible and find it dry, lacking the inspirational quality we expect it to have. But like the night sky, it does not offer up the full splendor of its sacred beauty to those who only take the time to give it a passing glance {tweet this}. It requires a searching gaze and a heart willing and eager to learn for the jewels of truth encased within the ageless tome to be revealed. The benefits of such seeking could fill a book, but here is one: “The one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom [the Bible] and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who acts – this person will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1:25)
The hymn “Take Time to Be Holy” came wafting into my mind, echoing the truth the stars had just whispered:
Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;
Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.
Make friends of God’s children, help those who are weak,
Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.
Take time to be holy, the world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone.
By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.
Next time you’re outside at night, look up at the stars and let them be a reminder to you to “take time to be holy” and gaze into the Word of God. Don’t miss out on the treasures tucked within the pages of the Bible.
The entirety of Your Word is truth, and all Your righteous judgments endure forever. Princes have persecuted me without cause, but my heart fears only Your Word. I rejoice over Your promise like one who finds vast treasure.” Psalm 119: 160-162 {tweet this}
If you’re not sure where to start in studying the Bible (or would like to try something new), check out these Bible study books using this method. They are a wonderful tool for digging deeper into the Bible!
Question: What treasures have you found in the Bible?
This was beautifully put, and the concepts were encouraging and challenging at the same time! Sometimes in the craziness of life it is easy to only give the Bible a sweeping or passing glance, and to forget to take the time to be holy, but when we [I] do that so many beautiful treaures and blessings are missed. Looking at the stars has always been special to me because as I look at them I remember that God calls each of them out by name, and then that reminds me again that– no matter what is going on in my life– God knows my name and He cares for me! Thank you for sharing this! –Kate
Thank you, Kate. Yes, it is way too easy to take too little time for God and His Word. I’m so glad that He understands our daily challenges with busyness and gives us grace to keep trying to carve out that time for Him – even though it doesn’t always happen the way we want it to! I’m glad you enjoyed the post!
Beautifully written and so true! One of my favorite passages concerning the stars is in Psalm 147:4-5 — “He telleth the number of the stars; He calleth them all by their names. Great is our Lord, and of great power; His understanding is infinite.” And in verse 3 we are reminded that “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” This is so precious to me — that the all-powerful God who created all things and holds them all together cares about the broken hearts of people.
M.P. Ferguson wrote:
“With His healing hand on a broken heart,
And the other on a star,
Our wonderful God views the miles apart,
And they seem not very far.
There is hope and help for our sighs and tears,
For the wound that stings and smarts;
Our God is at home with the rolling spheres,
And at home with broken hearts.”
And another person has written, “O Holy Spirit, with lowly reverence we venture yet to say that never hast Thou collected and put side by side two more exquisite statements than these: ‘He healeth the broken in heart, and knoweth the number of the stars.” (Archibald G. Brown)
These are precious thoughts to me. And I loved the comparison in your post between the night sky and God’s Word. Very well written. To really get the most out of our Bibles, we must not simply read them but dig in and meditate on the truths contained in them.
The photo is amazing, too. Josh is a talented photographer!
Those are beautiful quotes, Mrs. T.! Thank you for sharing them! I never realized that the verse before the ones about the stars was about God healing the broken hearted – how special.
A few days ago I was thinking, that in this big expansive universe,God knows me ( a speck) and cares about what burdens I have. He cares for you. ❤ This blog explains it all in such easy to understand words. I love this as I do all your writings.?
Thank you Aunt Linda! It is so amazing that God is so huge and yet has the capacity to care about the details of our lives.