I had a great date nite with my wife last night. It was awesome. We went to The Griffith Observatory and got a better idea of how big the universe is and how small we are. It was cool because it is rare to take a break from life and see it from the standpoint of how big our universe is. It is hard to be self-centered when you see how gigantic the universe is, how old it is, and how small and young and fleeting our lives are. Here’s a video of how small we are, beginning with L.A., then the Earth, then our Solar System, then the Milky Way galaxy, and then the universe. When you see these one after the other, the more you soak it in, the smaller you feel. There’s something right about that. The universe is big, and God is bigger. He spoke the universe into being.
Click here to see my youtube video.
Some stats:
· In our galaxy there are about 500 billion stars.
· There are about 1 million galaxies in the span of your finger held about a foot from your face as it is directed toward the sky.
· If there are about 500 billion stars in a galaxy, and there are a 1 million galaxies in the span of your finger pointed at the sky, and there is a lot more space that needs to be covered, how big is the universe? It’s huge! And we’re small, yet I find a way to make this universe about me. I slip into self-centeredness and plotting how I can exalt myself or how I need to be given attention or treatment as if I am more than I am and God is less than he is.
God put me in my place tonight. And I thank him for that reminder. What kindness and grace to be reminded that he is central and still allows me to seek and enjoy him. And he gets pleasure in that! I praise him for his grace to us in Christ Jesus. I also thank him for my beautiful wife and her good idea to visit the observatory. If the Lord wills, this will not be the last time we visit this site.
Note: The Griffith Observatory staff assumed evolutionary theory, the Big Bang, and the old age of the universe in every presentation. I disagree with them on that, but was still blessed by the vastness of the universe and the glory that is to be seen. I also was reminded how worldviews effect science and astronomy and how we can easily pass off as fact what we assume by faith without examining the presuppositions. To see that too is a gift from God and it is by his Word and Spirit that we as Christians can learn and know these things. God is good. God is better than the vast universe and the knowledge of astronomers. I need to stand in awe of him. So must you.
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