LENSES

365 Days of Thanksliving — Day 228

You know me; I’m into all things landscape photography, especially that subgenre relating to the night sky. I am just so captivated by the grandeur and beauty of the heavens. From our small town, where the light and atmospheric conditions aren’t always the best, I nightly look heavenward with awe onto what God created. Then I think, You ‘O Lord, you put all those there! Not only that, but our Lord knows every star by name, and has set them each precisely in their place (Psalm 8:3–4).

Do you know how many stars that is? It’s estimated that in our galaxy alone, there’s roughly 200 billion (yes, with a B) stars. More staggering, astrophysicists estimate there are some 200 billion galaxies in the universe, with roughly 200 billion stars in each.

I asked Gemini to do the math. AI gave me this answer: “The estimated number of stars in the observable universe is generally calculated to be around 2 x 10^23 (200 sextillion), with some upper-end estimates reaching 10^24 (1 septillion).”

Holy Toledo, Batman! That’s a lot of suns like ours. I mean, some are smaller and some are YUGELY bigger, but you get the idea. That math is… whoa! It’s immeasurable. Our minds can’t conceive of numbers so big. Yet, get this: God knows each of those sextillion starry hosts by name. I’m lucky to remember 300 names. That’s one big UFFDAH!

Now… let’s have a bit more fun. Down here on earth, it’s estimated that roughly 117 billion souls have walked this planet. And God has known all our names—and not just that, but every hair on our heads, the day we were born, and the day we’ll go out (Job 14:5, Psalm 139:16).

And for every soul, God has given us lenses to understand our world. Of course, this includes our physical lens (actual eyes) —more technically engineered and precise than any lens produced by mankind. But it also includes the lenses of our souls, minds, and spirits.

With these lenses, we look up and wonder. With these lenses, we perceive our world and try to self-ordain our lives. And while we each have a unique set of lenses, we perceive life, the universe, and everything in it.

But in the end, only one lens and perception matters: God’s. Boom. There it is, right?

So… how did all these musings happen today?

As I was pondering the daily question—what area of life am I thankful for today?—I saw an image from a fellow milky way lover that, honestly, put a tear in my eye. His image was simple, yet elegant. The artist is a Frenchman named Daniel Banon.

With the lens of his camera, and with the lenses of his eyes, mind, and soul, Daniel composed an image of the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Sénanque under the blanket of our galaxy: stars, nebulae, and the galactic center perfectly in frame. And to me… that’s just a wow.

I’m thankful for all the artists out there who share their perspective on our world (and of God’s workmanship). Whether he knows it or not, Daniel Banon is one of God’s creations; as are you; the 117 billion souls who’ve ever walked planet earth; and the estimated 200 sextillion starry hosts. The Lord knows us all. Yowzers!

Tonight, I’m grateful for all of that—that lens of perspective God gave us all, so that we can make this world more colorful and enjoyable for everyone.

What are you grateful for this day?

Credit to Daniel Banon for the image inspiring this post's image. The post containing his image can be found here on social media. Click THIS LINK.