Look up! (Psalm 121)

This picture is from this mornings solar eclipse, over St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, Russia.

I've seen lots of these photos today, from those who were gazing at the sun through special lenses and to beautiful photos of total eclipse. But this partial one is the one that catches my attention. The sun growing dark and the shadows creating this evening-like scene, in a city that captures my imagination....

I'm always curious about who's attention gets drawn to the skies, and what those beautiful pictures mean for them...do they just stare in amazement at the beauty of the heavens? Do they imagine what it's like for science to let us imagine worlds beyond? Do they worship the sun and moon as gods? Or do they know the Jesus, and the Shalom of God?

Today's eclipse started in our Arctic north, and then passed over Greenland, western Siberia, Mongolia and China. The first Russians to witness the eclipse were on the Arctic island of Spitzbergen north of Norway. It's a path to China that I'd rarely consider, even though I once flew from Heathrow to Singapore. And yet today, I find that path comforting. I've imagined today the view from the Heavens towards earth as the globe spins, and so many eyes looking upwards....

And I prayed, for those whose faces stopped to see the uniqueness of this day...and for those who didn't (because of the clouds, or because of disinterest, or more pressing matters that may have consumed them).

I wondered about how Jesus sees and knows each one...
- those turned towards him.
- those who are shielding their eyes with filters
- those who risk seeing, maybe becoming blind physically in the process.
- those who are busy with other things.

I like days like today. They make me think about those who walk this earth with me. And as I trim my hedges, and fix my car, and call some friends... I can remember that there's an entirely different perspective. That we're sharing this rock, in all of it's glorious beauty with so many people. Many tribes, many nations, many tongues. (Isa.45:23)

When I think about that, I'm so thankful...(Isa.45:18)