Life in the institutional church can sometimes be, at least in my opinion, confining and cramped. Still, it’s through the institutional church that I and my family have learned about Jesus and, flawed as it may be, the earthly church keeps Jesus in front of us. A survey showed that many church people come across as know-it-alls to 18-29 year olds. (“UnChristian” by David Kinnamon) There’s a good antidote for that and for the sometimes numbing effect of the institutional church.
One day while vacationing at Arcadia, Michigan, I awoke before dawn, went outside and became fascinated by an especially bright star. Thank heaven for the app Google Sky. No star at all but the planet Jupiter lifting my gaze. Wow! At its closest, Jupiter is 365 million miles from earth. Back home, I keep rising early to go into the dark and meditate on the grandeur of the solar system. “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place. Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades? Can you loosen Orion’s belt? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons?” (Job 38:3, 12, 31, 32)
Want some awe in your faith life? Get up early and look high in the southeastern sky.
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