Honoring Our Creator & Defending a Created Universe
“Thus says the LORD, who gives the sun for light by day and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—the LORD of hosts is His name: ‘If this fixed order departs from before me, declares the LORD, then shall the offspring of Israel cease from being a nation before me forever.’
Jeremiah 31:35-37, ESV
“Thus says the LORD: ‘If the heavens above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth below can be explored, then I will cast off all the offspring of Israel for all that they have done, declares the LORD. ’”
Certainly our LORD is in control but we are still catching up with Him. Israel still exists but scientists continue to explain earth and life without a Creator and Ruler.
Three of our four annual seasons occurred and we anticipate winter 2020. Sunrise in the southeast and sunset in the southwest is providing the hot to cold cycle in our northern hemisphere. Down under the southern hemisphere is transitioning from cold to hot again. The weather and climate indeed varies every year as we orbit the sun. Forgotten and ignored is the reason for our perpetual atmosphere conditions. The first eight chapters of Genesis contain the original history of real climate change.
Lucky Thirteen?
The ongoing cultural dichotomy can explain the adnauseam from environmentalism to global-warming and climate-change campaigns! Yes fellow readers it was thirteen years ago when Albert Arnold Gore, Jr. produced the film An Inconvenient Truth in 2006. And now we have teenage advocates who have been seriously brainwashed from such campaigns. Readers beware; we can expect additional annual polar ice cap melting frenzies. Simply ignore the annual polar summer seasons and you could be happy again but there are annual freeze and thaw cycles upon Earth poles!
Closest to the Sun
Sunday, January 05, 2020, we earthlings will be closest (perihelion) to the Sun at 91,402,477 miles away. Yes, the northern hemisphere is closest to our sun in wintertime, while folks below the equator experience summertime.
Four Planets
Four planets shine in the southern sky during November and December. Begin at dusk to see them. Look low west at the bright evening star Venus. Next see the bright Jupiter in the southwest. Then the ringed-wonder Saturn is dimmer and shining in the South. Uranus appears as a pale blue-green star in the southeast and is the dimmest. This writer needs to positively see Uranus!
Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun and is four times larger than Earth. On a clear night sky it is barely naked eye visible. Since it is 1.8 billion miles from the sun, binoculars will distinguish it from a star. It is passing across the dim constellation Aries (between Taurus and Pisces) from 2019-2023. The “bulls-eye” planet rotates backwards on an axis 08° from the orbital plane! Like Saturn it has a ring system but not as spectacular. Every 42 years we see Uranus, rings, and moons from its north or south pole which looks like a bulls-eye target. Amazing images from the Voyager 2 flyby-probe plus HST and Keck telescope sites show some of our Creator’s glory and splendor towards the edge of our solar system. Twenty years ago Fourth Day Gazette 16 (August 1999) featured planet Uranus.
Glory
“There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.”
(1 Corinthians 15:40-41, ESV)
You have to wonder why Apostle Paul compares creation and resurrection for the Corinthian Christians. Obviously 1900 years later the subjects are still controversial.
50 years ago, twelve American Astronauts journeyed to the Moon; Apollo-Saturn 9 in March 1969, A-S 10 in May, A-S 11 in July and A-S 12 in November. We celebrate the historical achievement of Apollo 11 when the first two men walked on the Moon. Two more walked on the Moon in November 1969. What a year it was. Each three man crew of Apollo left and subsequently returned to Earth together. One remained aboard the Apollo mothership in Lunar orbit while two descended aboard the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) to the lifeless surface of our Moon. (Yes, there are Americans who do not believe this actually happened.) A-K events of 1969 were submitted in Fourth Day Gazette 80 and reader’s responses were surprising. Thank you to those who did reply.
The past two generations have experienced much anti-Americanism within our borders. Many fellow citizens have been brainwashed and converted to extreme ideas about our heritage. The obvious national objective of 1969 succeeded because enough respect and unity was still intact. This writer laments the loss of such objectivity and respect for our nation. I am growing weary of the ongoing rejection of our Constitutional Republic. Might the founders have anticipated this with “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union”? Could they really believe unity and perfection would prevail without our Creator’s principles and standards as a basis from history? You know, those historical truths found in the 66 books known as the Bible!
Full Moons
Full Moons are difficult to observe and photograph without light filters. Clouds can be worked around but eventually can spoil viewing or enhance it. The picture shown above is an example of such viewing. Watch a full moon with sunglasses for a quick and economical solution.
Upcoming Attractions
The annual Geminid Meteor Shower on December 13- 14 will be spoiled by the Full Moon (December 12) and the bright waning Moon that weekend. So watch anyway for stray bright meteors to streak across the sky from the constellation Gemini. A day or two before and after peak shower nights may be rewarding.
Holidays
Thanksgiving November 2019 is our truly historic American holiday and holyday for family and friends. May it never become only another market bonanza.
Christmas December 2019 is an honorable holiday to remember the historic arrival of Immanuel. His thirty three years on Earth connects the Old and New Testaments. His departure and next arrival will complete history as we know it.
Ernie & Ruth
At your service with telescopes and sky. Sign up for our mailing list, request a back issue, or send a copy to a friend. Contact (217) 361-6374 or email erp72creek@yahoo.com.