The Perseids Shower

Last night I faced one of the benefits of being married to a man in the Army. As he woke up at 5 am to go to work, I got up as well and went outside. I pulled up the lawn chair and craned my neck toward the sky because last night was the best viewing night for the annual Perseid Meteor Shower. It also happened that the best time for viewing was just before dawn and within five minutes I saw three shooting stars. Thanks to the hub-ster for that one! I certainly love stars and have talked about them before, but during this meteor shower God taught me something new and it seems worth sharing.

I did some research on the Perseid Meteor Shower and it turns out that the reason we have this shower every August is because, in 1992, the comet Swift-Tuttle blazed a path in a part of the atmosphere through which the Earth passes. Because it had recently been heated up from the sun, the comet left debris in its path. Around every August, the Earth's orbit crosses the orbital path that Swift-Tuttle took in 1992, thus we see the debris left over in what I call shooting stars. The comet won't complete this orbit again until July of 2126 (133 years later), but we are still seeing debris from the comet's orbit in 1992. Amazing, right?

Perhaps I can be so bold as to use the very imperfect analogy that I thought of while watching this shower. Consider for a moment that Christ's appearance on earth was like that of the comet Swift-Tuttle. The comet left remnants of itself in the orbital path that crosses the atmosphere of the earth, just as Jesus left witnesses and believers to showcase the path of his salvation to all the earth by proclaiming the good news (Matthew 28:18-20). His remnant, however, was not burning debris in the sky, but light and knowledge in our hearts. Check it out: "For God who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6).

The beauty of where the analogy fails is this: Swift-Tuttle only comes about every 130 years, whereas Jesus ascended back to heaven, but the Father sent the Holy Spirit to guide us. When Jesus was teaching he promised, "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom my Father will send in my name, will teach you all things, and will remind you of everything I have said to you" (John 14:26). The knowledge and light he has granted us have been given through the work of the Holy Spirit. And with this knowledge, we are meant to light up the darkness around us. The book of Daniel puts it beautifully when is says: "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever" (12:3). 

Does your wisdom shine to others? Are you leading many to righteousness? This has really been on my heart lately. I'm not the best at personal evangelism. I can write on here all day and teach in groups, but one-on-one stuff is my nemesis. So my prayer for myself and for you is that we will be overcome with boldness for Christ. That we would not blend in with the night but would shine as stars in the universe. As Christians, we have been influenced by the God of light himself and it is our duty to shine that light to others because "you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord, live as children of the light (Ephesians 5:6). So be a bright and beautiful star today as you cross the paths of others, and let your wisdom lead many to righteousness.