Lord,

One night in August
our wee family stands
at the Glenshane Pass
gazing upwards at thousands of stars
and even some meteors
which streak, comet-like,
across the twinkling sky.
I am filled with a sense of awe.

And I wonder
about when you spent
forty days and forty nights
in the wilderness –
when you looked up into the night sky,
what stars did you see?
Did you have a sense
that Your Daddy
had carefully positioned
every single star
in the heavens
and had called each one of them
by name?
Did the night sky inspire in you
a sense of wonder and awe
at the majesty of creation?

I also wonder
about the people who lived here,
in the Sperrins,
and built the stone circles
of Beaghmore,
long before you ever foot on earth –
did the sight of the myriad of stars
in the heavens
inspire in them, too,
a sense of wonder and awe?

Lord,
down through the ages
these stars have fascinated people,
giving us a peek
at infinity,
and at the work of the Almighty.
Tonight I thank My God
for the gift of these stars
which help me to draw closer
to Him.

© Claire Murray, 22nd August 2015