9. #Earththefinalfrontier

Long long ago..in nothing far, far away...

There was a big BANG!!!

This massive explosion from nothing happened 13.7 billion years ago. From this explosion all matter in the Universe emerged - and within a tiny fraction of a second, gravity and and all other forces were formed. Along the way, protons and neutrons developed and then 300,000 years later, atoms formed filling the universe with clouds of Hydrogen and Helium gas. (1)

From this "Big Bang" came 140 billion galaxies and is still expanding...

From this explosion also came Earth.

Earth and all other planets in our solar system were created 4.5 billion years ago. Super heated gas and dust started to cool, and eventually condensed to take on a solid form thus creating the planets. Earth was then bombarded with meteorites and suffered from "intense volcanism" in which created a primordial atmosphere. Condensed water vapor and ice from comets cooled the molten exterior of the Earth to form a solid crust and produce oceans. 3.8 billions of years ago the Earth had cooled significantly and life forms began to evolve."(2)

"Since that time, a mere blip on the geological time scale all the events that we consider to be 'recent history' took place. The dinosaurs ruled and then died, mammals achieved ascendancy, hominids began to slowly evolve into the species we know as homo sapiens [us], and civilization emerged. And it all began with a lot of dust, fire, and some serious impacts. From this, the Sun, Moon, Earth, and life as we know it were all created." (2)

So there we have it. A Bang! Dust, Fire, and a lot of Meteors created everything around us.

Miraculously, or as luck would have it, gravity was present on our Earth. Therefore, the atmosphere was able to be formed. This atmosphere is essential to all life on Earth. It provides a thin protective blanket that contains the oxygen that we breath as well as other important gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide, water vapor, and ozone. It protects us from the Sun’s harmful rays, burns and destroys meteors that are headed toward Earth, and it keeps our planet from having extreme temperature changes. Without this protective blanket we would have very hot days and freezing nights. Later, oceans were then "produced"and later still the moon, which created tides by its gravitational pull. It is this regular movement of water that is said to have encouraged water based life to adapt or "evolve" in order to leave the ocean and start living on land. (3,5)

The Earth tilted and this caused the ice poles. It also gave us the four seasons.

DNA was formed. The genetic instruction for the development and function of all living things. DNA encodes information into alphabetic or digital form. This information is so precise that the odds of it happening once are astronomical. More than once is simply - supernatural. It is like expecting a computer to type this paragraph without any input, memory, processor (microchip), output or - me. It just happens. It's like throwing out a bunch of scrabble tiles and having them align perfectly in the same order as this paragraph. (4) The odds of that happening are a zillion to one. No wonder we needed billions and billions of years.

In our "ascendancy" we acquired all of the senses we have today. With our eyes, we can see all the beauty and majesty of the Earth. Sunrises, sunsets, twinkling stars, puffy clouds, lightening strikes, jungles, gardens, the Grand Canyon, Hawaii, the Matterhorn, a ladybug, a jellyfish, an orchid, our lover's eyes and our children.

With our ears we can hear a babbling brook, crashing waves, chirping crickets, singing birds, wind rustling through the trees, thunder, the squeals of delighted children and your beloved whispering, "I love you..."

With our nose we can smell the ground after a fresh rain, cherry blossoms, a neighbors BBQ, newly mown grass and...our baby.

With our mouth we can taste all the amazing flavors of herbs, fruits, vegetables and our neighbor's BBQ. We can speak, we can sing, we can laugh and we can kiss...

With our minds we can ponder, analyze, memorize, wonder, create, dream, change and with a little help from our emotions - love.

And the array of emotions we can feel seems endless...

Such wonderful blessings! Such a rich array of sheer abundance! The variety! Not just a few different kinds of flowers, grasses, bushes and trees but an overabundance! Not just a smattering of different kinds of animals but so many! And so different! Fish? Wow there are some weird fish! And so many types!! Birds, reptiles, insects! All of these super amazing creatures, some with super amazing powers (ants!). All of this - a myriad of marvelousness we call nature. (Mother Nature of course, lest we might accidentally attribute all this splendor to God.)

Have you ever had pet hamster, bird or turtle? Did you try to outfit their "house" with things that they needed not only to stay alive, but also enjoy some "creature" comforts and fun? When our city builds a zoo or aquarium, do we not want to see them provide the animals or fish in their care a humane habitat? Do we not judge that on the size and variety of the items they put inside their habitat?

Now look around at your habitat. The Earth.

How it is so perfectly made. So beautifully landscaped. It is lush with life and that abundantly. We have everything we need - not only to survive but to thrive and enjoy. We have also found cures for many ailments from this bounty. When we need a respite from this crazy life where do we want to go? The mountains? The lake? The desert? The ocean? Do we not take our children to the zoo to marvel at all the different animals? Go on Safari to see African animals in their natural element? Go whale watching? Bird Watching?

We love our Earth and it's creatures. We want to protect the Earth and everything in it and rightly so! Everything, even what we deem as icky, is amazing LIFE! It is spectacular and stunning.

Now, sit back and picture yourself in your favorite place. Do you see it? Are you in a meadow? Lush and verdant with a smattering of wildflowers? Is it sunny with a slight breeze? Are you by the water? Can you hear the waves lapping the shore and the sound of seagulls? Are you in the mountains? Perhaps sitting on a window seat by a fire watching silent snow flakes flurry. Maybe you are fishing by a river. Large majestic redwoods flanking it's sides. You look up to see a bald eagle soar through the air. And on your line is a great big salmon. You smile and sigh with delight as you bask over this perfect day and in the beauty of this perfect place. You look up - just as the sun begins to slide down over the horizon leaving in it's wake colors beyond... Your sense of awe, contentment and happiness is a little overwhelming and you stretch out your arms...

And thank an explosion for all your blessings.

Kind of feels empty doesn't it?

Remember that veil? The one that is over your eyes and your mind lest you find out the truth about God and how much he Loves you?

That veil is designed to darken your mind. To keep you from the marvelous light of God's love. That veil is what allows you to believe that all you are is a random mess of cells and that this world is nothing more than an AMAZING coincidence. Because if your mind wasn't darkened it would well up with thankfulness - for your amazing life, the life of your children and for everything God has provided for you. You would be able to comprehend the magnitude of your intrinsic value to a Father who loves you lavishly.

There is a way to throw off this veil of darkness - it begins by seeing things as they really are and not what the powers that be tell you. It begins with acknowledging that [any] creation needs a creator. Scientist acknowledge that DNA is in every living CELL and has a specific code of information for that particular species."This DNA carries a complete blueprint of the organism. It is what transfers characteristics from one generation to the next." (6) There are 3.3 billion chemical base pairs (or letters) - that spell out instructions for the cells to follow. (7) Let's face it - In order to have information - you need an encoder.

We need to stand back and view our body as miraculous and not just a science project. We are awesomely and wonderfully made! Every parent understands this the moment their children are born. This life is full of miracles everyday. A tiny acorn growing into a massive oak. A mere worm turning into a beautiful butterfly, a bee turning pollen into honey, Clouds filling with water to bring rain where water is not present. Everything this astonishing Earth provides has been given to us from God (The Creator and Encoder of us all).

I would like to encourage you while you do life this week, to be more aware and mindful of all the life around you. Take your eyes off man made things for a moment and use all of your senses to enjoy your family, your pets, the weather, and all nature around you. Stop for a moment each day and ask yourself what emotions are you feeling? Give yourself a "news" break. If you can, give yourself a break from all media. Slow down, breathe, relax... Use your mind to ponder the great gifts you have been given. Wonder at the fact that you are here, on this planet, spinning at an incredible 1,000 miles per hour and hurtling through space at 67,000 miles per hour, in a vast, ever expanding galaxy. At the end of the week, ask yourself - do you really believe that you, your family, all of nature, this planet's perfect alignment with the sun and the moon, our atmosphere and gravity are all just the result of a Big bang, Dust, Fire and Meteorites?

"They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator" (Romans 1:25)

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." (Psalm19:1)

"He made the earth by his power; he founded the world by his wisdom and stretched out the heavens by his understanding." (Jeremiah 51:15)

1.) BBC.com: Future. Big Bang: How The Universe Was Created.

2.) Phys.org: How was the Earth Formed.

3.) Astronomers without Borders.org: GAM 2018 Blog, Why We Need The Moon.

4.) Magazine.biola.edu: Can DNA Prove the Existence of an Intelligent Designer.

5.) esrl.noaa.gov: Earth's Protective Shield.

6.) earthsky.org: What is the Difference Between Plant DNA and Animal DNA.

7.) livescience.com: What is ENCODE and why does it matter.