TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART
THE CONCEPT//
the great american eclipse
On August 21, 2017 I had the privilege of experiencing a solar eclipse dubbed the “Great American Eclipse”. It was a total solar eclipse visible within a band spreading across the entire country - from the Pacific to the Atlantic coasts. This kind of eclipse hadn’t been seen in the US since 1918. I was fortunate enough to live within close proximity to the band, which is a big deal since the band included only 14 states!
Equipped with our official “eclipse viewing” glasses, we settled into our spot on the grass of a local community park just an hour away from our home and waited. None of us had ever experienced a total eclipse, so we didn’t know what exactly to expect. Would we be sitting in pitch blackness in the middle of the day?
As the new moon moved across the sky, and began to block out the sun, the atmosphere changed. The temperature suddenly dropped and the lights in the park turned on. It didn’t get pitch black, but it definitely switched from day to a night time feel in those five or so minutes it took for the moon to move across the path of the sun.
All of us viewing the eclipse together in that park, felt like we had just experienced something special! It was a moment we would never forget. What an incredible phenomena of nature!
THE DESIGN//
the awesomeness of God
“God’s love is meteoric, his loyalty astronomic, His purpose titanic, his verdicts oceanic. Yet in his largeness nothing gets lost; Not a man, not a mouse, slips through the cracks.” Psalm 36:5,6 (Msg)
Getting to experience the eclipse caused me to become more in awe of the greatness of God, the creator of heaven and earth. What magnificent power and creativity are displayed through God’s design of the universe. From the majestic mountains that soar above the sky, (known as 14er’s where I live!) to the crashing ocean waves that hug the coast of every land mass, creation is a visual display of the nature of God.
Yet in all of his greatness, in all of his largeness-nothing gets lost. He holds the universe and my heart.
THE GOLD//
realigning my focus
Sometimes it takes more that just a special pair of glasses to get my view of God back in clear focus. It takes an encounter with one of his natural phenomenons to see God as he really is. Meteoric love isn’t just a warm fuzzy feeling. It is love that will never give up. Astronomic loyalty isn’t just support in the good times, it’s God being for me when I feel like he is far away. Oceanic verdicts roar out justice when I have no voice fighting for me. Knowing how God feels about me gives me the courage to step out of my comfort zone and trust God as I venture into the risky unchartered waters of my future.
But this mighty, powerful, God has another side. His awesomeness doesn’t keep him at a distance, unapproachable, unattainable. Despite his greatness he is still intimate and personal. He doesn’t just care about me, he cares for all of his creation, even the tiniest rodent is seen by God. If he sees the mouse scurrying along the bushes in the cover of night, I can take comfort that I am never lost in his care.
I may not know the future, but it doesn’t matter. He does, and he won’t let anything slip through the cracks.
As I fall asleep at night I know that when the sun rises tomorrow, God will still be with me.