Awake My Soul, Sigh no More

Last night I saw the sky as if it was for the first time. I was invited by a family to go on a picnic, a popular pastime here in the Middle East and these gatherings are both frequent (weekly) and last long into the night. The camp site was located in the foot hills of the mountains that surround my city but resides on the other side of the mountain pass, making the city (and its lights) effectively obscured. My startling encounter occurred after a gastronomical display of overflowing food (imagine a spectacular Thanksgiving display and you have a fairly standard picnic with the exception that the women and men dress in their traditional formal clothing), everyone settles into their respective chatting groups with the kids playing tag and the families chattering over their chai tea (although various hypotheses are proposed as to the whys, tea somehow tastes better over a hearth fire than an oven or electric kettle).
After a few hours group of listening to the conversations floating around me, I sought a slice of quiet away from the crowd. I ventured from the picnic tables and the lighted outdoor pavilion and walked down the dirt road in the dark far enough that I could hear other things like the coyote in the distance or the brush of wind in the brittle vegetation. My thoughts were about my day and how much I needed to keep up with my investigation on the book of Proverbs. I was tired. My thoughts were muddled mixture good and difficult matters so it took several minutes before I stopped and looked up, as was my habit, to find the moon when I go on night walks in the States. I had not thought much about the difference that in sky since I knew I would spend most of my time in a fairly large city this summer. Yet, on the other side of this mountain in a land far away, away from the pollution of city artifice and sounds, I saw something that had fascinated me since I was a child: the night sky revealing itself in such a dramatic way, I ached with its fierce intimacy. The stars glittered brilliantly, their piercing radiance of fire and motion. The feeling that I could touch them was so strong, I reached to trace their formations with my hand. If only I was just a bit taller I felt sure I could reach them. Orion, of course, was posturing like the glorious warrior that he is, one of the easiest constellations to spot by even the most inexperienced eye. I had seen him before, thousands of times. But I didn’t see him fully. I didn’t realize how vast and powerfully he could appear, for all his popularity. My sincerest apologies, my dear. And Canis Major and Ursa Minor, old childhood friends when I was afraid in the dark and alone as a child. The feeling was better than magic because it was real. The truth of what I saw was both a sweet wonder and a quiet delight that seeped into my heart. Comforting me in the dusty mountains that encircled me, far from home and the people I love, my silent guides throughout my life declared God’s glory. There, as I marveled at God’s power and wisdom, MY Creator and theirs, spoke clear and true: He IS Unfathomable:

The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.

The mysteries of creation revolve around Himself, not man. In nature, in the darkness and the revelation of God in creation, Job understood for the very first time the epic Character of God:
“I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Listen, please, and let me speak;
You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’
“I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You. (Psalm 19)

The Creator appointed 300 billion stars in the Milky Way yet only 2500 stars may be seen to the naked eye at any one time in one place. But oh, how they shine. And now, I hold my tongue, grateful to see more clearly in the darkness the prominence God’s illumination of the heavens. “I meditate on You during the night watches because You are my help; I will rejoice in the shadow of Your wings, I follow close to You; your right hand holds on to me.” (Psalm 63)

(note: the title comes from a Mumford and Sons song)