That cold air…the kind we aren’t used to yet…hit me recently as I opened the door to walk outside into the dark morning for chores around the farm. I hunched over to keep more focused on staying warm as I tried to hurry between the house and the barn. Meanwhile, I was evaluating the ground and taking note of the surroundings around me. Was the dew frozen? Felt like it should be… Was there much of a breeze? Not really…and that should keep it a bit “warmer” while milking the cow.
I carried on with filling buckets, sorting out food, and preparing for milking as my hands got colder. I tried to ignore the cold by just keeping my head down and “ignoring” it.
After a few minutes, I headed back to the house to drop some buckets there before milking. Josh was heading down the steps toward the barn. He immediately said, “Aren’t the stars beautiful? You can really see them this morning!”
I looked up quickly…realizing immediately that normally I would have looked up right away to see what the sky looked like that morning. Sure enough, today the star visibility was incredible despite the lights from town a few miles away. There was even enough of the sun rising deep in the horizon to clearly see the outline of the moon–even though it was only a crescent. How had I missed looking up to see this? What if Josh hadn’t said something? I would have missed the beauty that made me stop for more than a second…to stare in awe and wonder.
So, how does it happen? How do we miss the little things like this…little things, familiar things that sometimes make a big impact? For me, today, I was distracted. The cold air and the newness of this change of seasons distracted me from something that I routinely do when I head out in the morning. I am, more often than not, out before the sun is up (except in the summer). I have grown to appreciate the diversity of the sky on any given morning. I’ve gasped in awe at times with that initial glance upward to see what the sky held that day. But today…I almost missed it. Today, the distraction of something–that I will soon adjust to–almost kept me from seeing the beauty that comes with the cold.
The first thought that went through my mind as I looked up and saw all the stars hanging so clearly in the sky above me was “the heavens declare the glory of God”. And I dwelt on that thought for a moment—as many promises from God that relate to the stars passed through my head… I realized how distracted we are in our current culture in contrast to the constant awareness of the stars that past cultures have had (and some current occupations still rely on today). I realized how easy it is to daily miss the beauty and the glory of God around us that so clearly points us to His daily care and His daily presence among us. I realized I almost missed the opportunity today to experience “the heavens declaring the glory of God”.
In it all, I recognized—on a bigger scale–that I need to daily evaluate what it is that is distracting me from the promises God has given me that I can cling to that day. The cold, how I feel, what I am frustrated with, finances, parenting, my health, our culture, busyness… In it all…the heavens declare the glory of God… And that fact is enough to remind me that He’s still in control of it all… His purpose will continue to stand… And no matter what I face today, He’s with me…He has a purpose…and He will accomplish His plan. The question really becomes…will I trust Him? Will I let go of my distractions, my anxiety, my fears, my concerns and remember that… “God is God, and there is no other. I am God and there is none like me.” (Isaiah 46) He can do it all…and seeing the stars on a clear, crisp morning is just a reminder of that simple fact!
Great content! Keep up the good work!