Starstruck

Have you ever seen a shooting star? I don't know about you, but it is really exciting for me to get this rare treat. I was thinking about shooting stars this morning and what a gift from God they really are. First of all, I went to www.nasa.gov and here is what they say about shooting stars:

Despite what their name suggests, "shooting stars" are not stars at all; they are meteors. Meteors are produced when bits of cometary or asteroidal debris in space, usually between the size of a sand grain and a pebble, enter the Earth's atmosphere and burn up, creating a brief — usually white — streak of light.

To me this is God's way of showing us He loves us. These spectacular light shows are created from a space rock the size of a grain of sand, or at most a pebble! I was wondering how a particle the size of a grain of sand produce such a beautiful sight, so I looked to NASA for my answer. NASA says that the reason the particle lights up the way it does is due to the speed at which the meteoroid enters the earth's atmosphere -- 60-70 kilometers per second. Just to give you some perspective, the space shuttle moves around the earth at about 8 kilometers per second. NASA also states:

Air friction heats the meteoroid so that it glows and creates a shining trail of gases and melted meteoroid particles. The gases include vaporized meteoroid material and atmospheric gases that heat up when the meteoroid passes through the atmosphere. Most meteors glow for about a second.

To me that is a miracle designed to keep us mindful of the Creator of the Universe. I took my thought process one step further. Shooting stars are really meteors right? Well, meteors come in different sizes. Here is what NASA says again:

The size of meteorites varies greatly. Most of them are relatively small. The largest meteorite ever found weighs about 66 short tons (60 metric tons). It fell at Hoba West, a farm near Grootfontein, Namibia. However, much larger bodies, such as asteroids and comets, can also strike the earth and become meteorites.

Meteorites reach the earth's surface because they are the right size to travel through the atmosphere. If they are too small, they will disintegrate in the atmosphere. If they are too large, they may explode before reaching the earth's surface. One such object exploded about 6 miles (10 kilometers) above the Tunguska River in Siberia in 1908, leaving a 20-mile (32-kilometer) area of felled and scorched trees.

I think that we can see God's protection and intentional design by studying Meteorites. Hollywood has capitalized on people's fear by making movies that suggest that a meteorite could destroy the earth. But God has protected us. He protects us from comets and asteroids. He designed the earth's atmosphere to also protect us. God is such a loving God. I t is so hard to understand how people can choose not to believe in Him when it is easy to see the Creator in His Creation.

God's Timetable

Philippians 1:3-6 I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (NIV)

I read an inspiring story today about a lady and her faith. She has cancer and will die at any time and is at peace with God's timetable. She was majorly challenged by cancer. The challenge was, do you really trust God? She learned that although circumstances may change, God never changes. When she was faced with this challenge she decided that either she would believe every word God says, or none of it because the buck stops with God. There is no higher authority in our lives as Christians. So, her thought process continued with thinking that if she truly trusted God with her life, then how when or why she is to die is none of her business. She realized that she would not die one minute before or after God decides to take her home. Why waste energy fretting? Then the above scripture became so clear: God promised that He will complete the good work He began in her. Her death would only indicate that God finished His work and accomplished His plan. Coming to these conclusions made it possible for this precious lady to walk through years of suffering. She tells people that she is preparing for graduation. Life is as short as a flash of fire and smoke when a piece of paper catches on fire. This lady came to the realization, that since our lives are indeed a flash in the pan compared to eternity, that what we are going through really doesn't matter - it seems so much smaller when you put it in perspective.

So how are we going to live our lives? Will we take this challenge and decide to believe everything God says or nothing He says? God does not want us to be lukewarm or straddle any fences. It is all or nothing for the One who created us, who sent His Only Son to die for us and who loves us unconditionally even when we don't want to be loved.

THE BEST CHURCH BULLETIN BLOOPERS

THE BEST CHURCH BULLETIN BLOOPERS

These sentences actually appeared in church bulletins
or were announced in church services:

Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.

Announcement in a church bulletin for a national PRAYER & FASTING Conference: "The cost for attending the Fasting and Prayer conference includes meals."

The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been cancelled due to a conflict.

Next Thursday there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.

Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.

A bean supper will be held on Tuesday evening in the church hall. Music will follow.

At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be "What is Hell?" Come early and listen to our choir practice.

Eight new choir robes are currently needed, due to the addition of several new members and to the deterioration of some older ones.

Our next song is "Angels We Have Heard Get High."