The days have grown darker and darker. But in one week, we will turn a corner. The winter solstice will take place at 5:02 am EST on Monday, December 21. The light will shine just a little more each day as the days begin to lengthen.
We will also witness another astronomical phenomena on the same day. Jupiter and Saturn will conjoin together and will appear to almost merge as one star. It is the first time that this has happened in 800 years. It is reminiscent of the Christmas star that appeared over Bethlehem when Jesus was born.
I am reminded of Psalm 19 where it says:
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1, ESV)
It has been a difficult year, but it is the God of creation who puts these reminders in the sky to remind us that he is light in the darkness. We need these reminders!
Keep in mind that these are not the only reminders. There are daily reminders of God’s faithfulness and love all around us. Even in the darkest moments, there are glimpses of light if we will have the eyes to see. They are often seen in small things that are easily overlooked.
Stop what you are doing. Take a look. What do you see? Where do you see God’s light shining today? Feel free to share in the comments.
Yes I believe the more we look for those reminders the more we see them all around us in the big and little things.
Thank you Pastor!
Gods beauty is in the stories I’m reading where strangers are helping those in need for Christmas.
When I hear young adults praying for another family. It’s all around us if we open our hearts and eyes.
My husband of 45 years died last month. I see God all around me: In the bright shining eyes of my 38 year old son who comes to see me many hours every day, in my 2 little grandchildren ages 1 1/2 and 4, in the moon and the stars every evening when I take my dog outside. God is all around us and demonstrating His love for us every day, especially in His word, the Bible. I thank Him for this ministry.
Ahh! 2021. But what about 2020? Do we see any positives? I’d like to think so. It was a hard year. Why? Because of the pandemic? because of the riots? because of the political unrest? I don’t think any of those things may the year hard, I think it was the fear that went with it all. We had our noses stuck into the news where they got ratings for their scare tactics. We talked to our friends…..about all the uncertainty. The shelter at home orders brought anger, but for those of us who stopped and got still, we saw Jesus. Not Jesus “in”, but Jesus. His promises are as true today as they ever were. His peace came again and again to silence the warning bells. Opportunities were opened up that we would have never had. 2021? Well, since all that stuff is old hat, we can just pass by and trust Jesus.