Our Pale Blue Dot

We live on a pale blue dot, a speck in the spectrum of the universe.

It was cool, after I posted my last blog, late that night I went out on the quad at first and then out onto the soccer field to watch a meteor shower (although it never really got that intense while we were out there), it was awesome to just lay beneath the stars and look up at the night sky and its rolling expanse and all of its glory.

I couldnt help but think to myself that this was just one of the canvas' that God has used to demonstrate His almighty power, love and creativity.

"Lift your eyes and look to the heavens; Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and strength, not one of them is missing. " - - Isaiah 40:26



As beautiful as Van Gogh's "Starry Night" is, and it is worth millions of dollars, it still doesnt not begin to capture or recreate the beauty and majesty as only God can do. Words fail me when I search for a way to describe the pure and utter power and vastness of God's intimate and detailed creation. God is not limited to this earth, nor is He limited to this universe. . .

But rather, He took the time to create it all, to know the name of every star, to know the number of grains of sand that the earth contains, the number of heairs on my head and a love that knows no comparison. The love of the Father is incomprehendable. He sent His Son to die for the sins of the world which He created, a world that turned their backs on Him.

If that isnt amazing love, then I dont know what is.

"The Universe is One of God's Thoughts"

The Universe is one of God's thoughts.

That is a pretty profound statement, not to mention an amazing and humbling thing to meditate upon. At church we have just begun a series of the Trinity. Today's message was entitled "The Father: Powerful Creator". It was an amazing sermon that left me feeling greatly humbled and greatly rejoicing for the Creator of this universe cares about me, loves me and knows me by name.

I want to spend this week really meditating on my notes and the Scripture passages that relate to the powerful sermon that I heard this beautiful Sunday morning.



This photo is entitled "The Blue Marvel" It was a picture taken from the Apollo in space. It is a beautiful portrate of this planet. Stop and think about this:
Every human that has ever lived. Every emperor, king, slave, civilization, war, disease, famine, every man and woman, every young couple in love, every child that is born, every good time, every laugh, every sorrowful moment, every death, every single thing involving man has happened on this earth. This earth has seen the rise and fall of powerful civilizations.

This earth is only a speck, a "pale blue dot" on the expanse of the this solar system, even larger this galaxy, even larger still in this universe.

In church I was sitting there just watching this presentation, a journey through the universe, and scale pictures of the earth compared to the sun, compared to Jupiter, its place in the Milky Way, and in the Universe over all...it is mind blowing.

Let me briefly start from the beginning, and then continue on with this story throughout the week.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty..." In the beginning God created the heavens, the universe. I challenge you all to go on the internet or to a NASA website and begin to look through pictures of the universe and do a little light reading on the sites and you will begin to understand how unfathomably vast the universe is.



That is simply the Milky Way Galaxy, notice where the sun is in proportion to our galaxy.

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the eart, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." Gen. 1:26'

We were created after every star was hung in the sky, every solar system, galaxy and the universe was complete. He loved us enough that after he named every star, we were created in His image, He breathed breath into our lungs.

How humbling is it to know that we are so unfathomably minute compared to all of the universe, and yet to God Himself. I cannot even begin to describe what is does for my soul to know that That God loves me! The very God that the Bible describes as a God wrapped in light, is the same who sent His Son to this earth, who stepped down from Heaven from His throne and into time and space to live and die for me.

I sit here with tears in my eyes typing these words because His love is so amazing!!!

Well this post has run long enough, I will be sharing more as the week progresses. God bless and may you all bbe continually reminded of the love of God and His role in your life, your creation and how small you are. As I said in my previos post our lives are but vapors.

God Bless,
Alex

Depravity

"Complete and utter depravity."
That is what continued to run through my mind as I sat glued to the tv watching FoxNews for the past 45 minutes.

At least 32 people are dead at Virginia Tech, about 28 wounded and in the hospital with 4 in critical condition.

This school shooting is the worst shooting in US history, not simply for schools, but shooting, period. I guess when I think of school shootings, I see it as somewhat limited to high schools with the whole teenage angst thing. But this is mad crazy.

You would think to shoot over 60 people you would need massive amounts of weapons. They were saying that the shooter, who is dead, could easily have had a fanny pack with 2 handguns and multiple clips, weighing under 5lbs and it wouldnt be noticed at all. That is ridiculous.

I immediatley thought of Columbine when I first was reading about this on abcnews.com this morning. And I found out that this week it will have been 8 years since the Columbine massacre. Its crazy to see how things have changed drastically in my lifetime, but I cannot even begin to fathom what things will be like for my children. This world is crazy. It is insane to look back and remember the Columbine shooting, the Oklahoma City Bombing, 9/11, even the shooting this past year in PA at the Amish school and now this. The largest schooting ever in U.S. history.

I am definitley praying for the students at Virginia Tech, their families, faculty members, the police and emergency responders. A lot of people are effected by this, the school has over 25,000 students! I couldnt begin to imagine that happening to me, or even to people that I know. I have already found out that several of my friends have siblings and friends that go to college there.

I pray that as these people are hurting and searching in their lives, that God's grace and love will be poured into their lives and made evident, because they need Jesus so badly. I mourn for the souls that have entered into eternity today and the likelyhood that they may not have known Christ as their personal Lord and Savior and that means that they are destined for hell.

Reflecting.
Alex

"3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, 5who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

1 Peter 1:3-7

April 16, 2007. . .

This April 16th is unlike any other that I have EVER experienced.

Usually mid-way through April I am dealing with warm rain showers, budding trees, green grass and birds singing in the early morning.
That was Illinois.

This is Northeast Pennsylvania.
So this mid-April day I am dealing with howling winds whipping across the quad of BBC, snow swirling around me in all directions, snot freezing in my nose, my eyebrows crystalizing as I walk to my classes...and there are no birds chirpping, no green grass, no budding trees. . .

My conclusion is that as I am working at BBC all summer long I will at the very least, be wearing a light jacket/wind breaker all summer long. And to think I was going to go to AE and buy a pair of shorts.

Ridiculous.
-Alex

Cancer.

Cancer.
The word that has seemed to haunt me all of my life, since I was 4 years old.
Well, its back in my life again. My grandfather was diagnosed with cancer a couple months ago, February I believe. He has already had his second treatment of chemo. and it doesnt appear to be doing much.

In fact it has spread to his brain and is growing and thriving there. They are supposed to run some more tests, but it seems like they might discontinue the chemo and try radiation on his brain. Who knows.

Its weird to hear a doctor say how long someone has left on this earth. To put a timetable on someones life from anywhere between 6 months and a year is pretty frightening and surreal. It is hard to imagine life without someone that has always been there.

You would think that you would get used to this aspect of life...but you never really do. I guess, that if you were used to it and ok with it all then you might be in a not so good place. I just have to remember that I have the one true God that with His abounding love and grace I can make it through all things.

I continually pray for strength and for His grace to strengthen me, so that I may be one is unwaivering in faith.

-Alex

"Fear not, for I am with youl Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." -Isaiah 41:10

Disappointment

Maybe its just me, but I feel really disappointed in people when you expect more out of them and they chose the path of sin over and over again. You try and help them in anyway you can and you and others try and point them towards Christ, but it feels like they are running as fast as they can away from God.

I dunno... it is just hard to step back and say "Lord, whatever Your will is here, let it be done." And just step back from a situation and let it be and pray. Maybe its because I like to feel like a savior of sorts, helping and doing everything in my power to right a wrong - - but that is the wrong attitude.

Its not up to me. It is up to the Creator and it is all written in His divine plan - - and that can definitley be hard to realize and accept. I hate to say "All I can do is pray", because thats what I should be doing in the first place and that is the best thing that I could ever do for someone.

I pray that my mindset would be changed in this aspect and that Christ would continue to mold me to His likeness and that I would just step back completely and understand that God is in control and let Him work His plan, in His time. I also pray for my friend, that he would realize his sin and take the right steps in his life to reconcile with God and stop trying to fool himself and others.

After all we are to be a city on a hill, and it is hard to be that beacon of light when our words say one thing, and our actions preach something utterly to the contrary.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfetor of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (v.1-2)....My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
--Hebrews 12:1-2, 5-6

Reflection

Well its April 9 which means I have 4 weeks of classes left and 3 days of finals until I am finished with my first year of college. Crazy thought, considering that it seemed to take me ages to get out of high school and to this place in my life.

God has been doing a great work in my life through it all. A lot has changed, and thats ok. I am actually pretty happy with my life considering all the major changes, losses and ups and downs of life. This past year has been a celebration of life, both eternal life and new life on this earth. I welcomed in a new cousin and ushered out my great grandfather to the glory of Heaven.

I have had great times of reflection after times of despair. When I was in Arkansas last month for my great grandfather's funeral, it was amazing to celebrate the life of man who came to know Christ at age 72 and then went on to serve Him and do great things for Him until the day he died, days short of his 92nd birthday. But at the same time it brought unexpected pain.

As we traveled from the funeral home to the cemetary and concluded the burial services I turned to my right and there was the grave of my Grandpa Jerry who died of cancer way too young in life, and that brought back a deep pain, not only for me, but also for my family.

Privately it sent me in a bit of a tailspin. I began to relive the questions I had when I was so young. Questions like "Why did God have to take my Grandpa, he was my best friend?" or "God must not care because he let that happen to my Grandpa, and it has forever changed our family".

And then as I came back to school a week later and as I was doing my Bible study I was reading through Habbakuk - - for possibly the first time in my life. As I read through it, initially I saw the writings of a man who was angry with God, because he did not understand how the Creator was allowing such wickednesss and pain to prevail. It isnt until the 3rd and final chapter that Habbakuk comes to the realization that God has a Sovereign plan and His will is superior to anything we could ever dream of or know.

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights."
Hab. 3:17-19

Though there seems to be no fruit or positive things in our/my life at times, I need to be constantly rejoicing because I have the God of lovingkindess who prevails and is my Savior. He gives me strength to carry on and he enables me to go to the heights in life. I guess I must continually work to remember that God will never give me/us more than we can handle in life. He will always be there forever and ever.

He will not leave nor forsake me. I can rejoice that in the pain I am stronger in Him. He enables me to persevere. There is no greater thing and I fully complete in Him. God's redemptive story is one that reaches to the beginning of time as we know it and because of that I can face the heartache and understand there is a greater plan than I can ever know. I am but a speck of dust in God's universe of knowledge, and yet he loves me.

A good friend once said to me that we are but a vapor. I am just thankful for my vapor, and that Christ came to this earth and shed His redeeming blood for me. I am alive and well in HIM!!