Fearful of the Night?
(a Steve Orr Bible reflection)
Though my soul may set in darkness,
it will rise in perfect light.
I have loved the stars too fondly
to be fearful of the night. **
That’s an excerpt from a poem. Viewed through one lens, the poem is about an old astronomer who, at the end of his life, charges his pupil to continue to pursue "the service of our science." Viewed through a different lens, there’s a less obvious message: the old astronomer's love of God's creation.
The old astronomer spent a lifetime staring into the night sky, long enough to lose his fear of it, long enough to understand something profound: Even though he was surrounded by the night, he could live as in the day. He learned something that could benefit us all: The night is just another piece of the day. It’s the only piece of the day when we can see the light of other suns.
And in the end, no matter how vast the darkness, how uncharted the way, the old astronomer is confident "God will mercifully guide me on my way amongst the stars."
Like Moses speaking with God in this week’s Exodus passage, the old astronomer understood that the journey is meaningless if God does not go with us. And if God is with us, we have nothing to fear, not even the unknowns of the night.
This week’s Isaiah selection declares: "I am GOD, the only God there is. I form light and create darkness; I make harmonies and create discords. I, GOD, do all these things." Psalm 96 sums it up: "For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens."
It all belongs to God: the vastness of the universe, all the unknowns, all the light of distant suns, and all the darkness. As long as we are in the presence of the Lord, we need not be fearful of the night. We, too, will rise in perfect light.
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PHOTO: Adobe Express filtered through Photoshop Express
** The Old Astronomer to His Pupil
—Sarah Williams (English poet, 1837–1868)
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Join us Friday morning for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. Starting at 8:00, It’s a pleasant hour on Zoom* and in Waco at Our Breakfast Place. We eat, read scripture, catch up with each other, and toss sermon ideas at the pastor.
Blessings,
Steve
*Zoom link (Zoom allows you to mute the camera and the microphone if you don’t wish to be seen or heard):
SCRIPTURES FOR SUNDAY AND THE COMING WEEK
Exodus 33:12-23
Psalm 99
Isaiah 45:1-7
Psalm 96:1-9, (10-13)
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Matthew 22:15-22
Proper 24 (29) (October 18, 2026)
