Reflections on the Beach: The Incredible Creator

 

Reflections on the Beach

Week Three

"The Incredible Creator"

Focus Passage: Genesis one

Bible Reading: Romans 4-10

      One of my favorite things about going to the beach is the constant rolling of the tide.  I love to hear the noise of the waves breaking on the shore.  It's relaxing, almost therapeutic.  I could easily sit for hours in a beach chair reading a book and listening to the waves.  The waves remind me that despite all the chaos and change in our world that some things remain unchanged, and some things can be depended upon.  But when we look at the waves we need to ask, why do we need the waves and what causes them?  The tide exists because of the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon on the earth's oceans.  Those two cosmic bodies are constantly pulling at the waves, churning them.  The moon has a greater effect on the tides than the sun, so what would happen if we didn't have the moon in the sky?  A lot of things would change.  First, the tides would be dramatically smaller, if existent at all.  The ocean would be dependent upon the sun alone for the tide. It is possible that ocean life would become stagnant and potentially die without the moon. The moon also helps slow down the earth's rotation.  Scientists believe that if the moon were to disappear that we would have 6-8 hour days instead of the typical 24-hour day.  Fathom that!  Naturally, the night sky would be darker since the moon is the brightest object in the night sky.  The next brightest object in the sky is Venus which is only 1/14000th as bright as our moon.  This would change the life of nocturnal animals since they rely on the light of the moon for hunting and would potentially eliminate them.  Nocturnal animals have a significant impact on our everyday life.  They eat a tremendous amount of bugs, some of which carry diseases that affect humans.  And yet another massive change would be the earth's tilt.  The earth is perfectly tilted on a 23 degrees axis.  If the moon were to vanish our axis would change dramatically, which would result in massive climate change and probably near extinction of human life.

      Evolutionary science believes that the moon came into existence 4.5 billion years ago when our planet crashed into another planet called Theia causing the moon to be formed from the surfaces of both planets.  Over the course of billions of years, the moon's surface became smoother resulting in the rock we see today.  Science has zero proof, the history channel even calls Theia an 'imagined' planet.  The Bible doesn't leave us to speculation.  Genesis 1:16, 19 says "God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also....there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day." The Bible makes it clear that the moon was created by God with a purpose, to provide 'light' at night and seasons.  Our seasons exist because of the moon.  Genesis one was written thousands of years prior to science understanding why we have seasons!  The moon's existence is not some cosmic accident, the result of two colliding celestial bodies.  Instead, it was purposefully created and designed by God.  Next time you go to the beach and see the tide be reminded that we have an incredible Creator God, who is all-powerful and all-knowing.

Reflections on the Road:

Our God is a creator.  Your reflection this week is simple: make it a point to thank God every day for His creation, which He designed for you.  AND mark down your favorite thing that God created.  Brownie points: it is Valentine's week, so husbands feel free to write down your wife's name as your favorite thing that God created.