Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
There is comfort in knowing that God counts the stars and calls them each by name. Our little corner of the observable universe only has about 400 billion stars while some galaxies easily have more than one trillion. If God can number the hairs on each of our heads, He has little trouble in remembering the constellations.
Stars instinctively make us to look up towards the sky and to creation. While the smart phone craze is creating a dynamic in which more and more people are looking down, ironically, technology at the same time allows us to see deeper and deeper into space. Thanks to tools like the Hubble Telescope, astronomers are able to estimate that there are between 100 to 200 billion galaxies.
Given the speck of space we take up, it's amazing to think how much God is mindful of us and pays such close attention to us. The answer of course to the deep wondering lies in Jesus Christ.
Christ was chosen for us before the creation of the world for our sake (1 Peter: 1:20). He is the truth that predates creation itself. Revelation proclaims that one day the sun will stop shining because Christ will be the only light we need (Rev. 21:23). That's pretty amazing to fathom, but everything in creation points to Christ. As Creator, Christ upholds the sun, as it merely reflects the glory of His light. And through the incarnation and the work of Christ, He is able to uplift mankind to his rightful place in creation. Christ makes the universe truly a man-centered universe through His incarnation. "Humanity and its position in the universe, or its relation to the universe, has been specified by the Incarnate God and Creator, Jesus Christ," declares Greek Orthodox theologian George Dragas.
It's amazing what has been accomplished in Jesus Christ. When we retire and sleep for the night, it is a rehearsal for our day of resurrection, which is secured by Christ. When He ascended to the Father, He exalted all of humanity. Christ has woven humanity into His divinity. Knowing Christ personally and trusting in His power is a great assurance as we look out into the heavens and beyond.
