The Sky is Proclaiming God’s Handiwork

“Heaven is declaring God’s glory; the sky is proclaiming God’s handiwork.” – Psalm 19:1

Last week, the New Horizons probe passed close to Pluto, and it beamed back the only clear pictures ever taken of the alien world. The best we had before this week was a smudgy, watercolor looking image. Now we are getting up close and personal, and it is a big deal.

There are many reasons to be proud of ourselves for pulling this off. We essentially lined up a rocket at with a point in the sky nine years ago and trusted that it would meet up with Pluto almost a decade later. And it worked.

However, as a person of faith and a space lover, there is something about space exploration and simply the beauty of space itself that always awakens my spiritual side. When I first saw the image of Pluto in full clarity, I couldn’t help but think of the opening lines of Psalm 19 where the Psalmist saw the glory and handiwork of God in the heavens. And the Psalmist couldn’t even see the heart shape on our celestial neighbor!

Consider projecting/showing/printing this image and asking your congregation to look at it and take it in. While they are contemplating the beauty and significance of the image, have someone read the text of Psalm 19. This would be a great opening to a service or a call to worship. It is a timely activity, but even if you keep strictly to the lectionary, it will arrive this fall on September 13, 2015.

How else might you consider incorporating the image or the story of the Pluto mission in your service, sermon, class, or lesson?

Lectionary Connections: Year A Easter Vigil, Year A Proper 22, Year B Lent 3, Year B Easter Vigil, Year B Proper 19, Year C Epiphany 3, Year C Easter Vigil

Header image by NASA.