The Observing Night. My wife and I had observed for a couple hours on September 10; we had sketched a couple NGC objects in the southern skies. (The story and sketches are on www.christworksministries.org on the Inspiration Page, top left story for the next few days.) Although my wife was weary and retired, I stayed at the observing station another hour to get 3 more NGC objects that are shown in the attached sketch. I had a chance to relook at the sketches tonight.
Technical Note. The three objects were sketched with the benefit of astro video connected to telescopes. 6822 was with an 80mm refractor (about 60X); 6925 and 6384 were with a 12.5 inch Dobsonian (about 130X).
A Lesson. I have learned to observe in good and bad conditions. The sketch was done under very nice conditions, but many of our observations are not under ideal conditions. Some opportuntities are surprisingly bad or difficult!! But we have learned to make the best of each circumstance for observing. In our relationship, we find the same lesson. Consider today in our view: we are currently on the road, which is often our time together without normal responsibilities. We needed to talk about some things making us uneasy. In addition, the trip is not for fun; my wife is getting a cancer checkup. Those checkups are not easy; it is not one of those things she enjoys doing. After a few hours of talking today, we deliberately recalled some important facts: we are His. He made us; He made the things around us. Whether circumstances are hard or easy, He still loves us and we have not abandoned our trust in Him. In a sense, we did something that Philippians 4:8 recommends: “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.” There is plenty of opportunity to leave conversations and situations on an unpleasant note, but we have learned that it is not very productive. However, it is not always easy to do this–it takes faith in Christ–the kind faith that is not like some political or religious belief, but the kind of faith that comes from a deposit of God in each of us when He caused a rebirth. It is the kind of faith that weathers well in the face of storms or calm days because it is the only thing constant in the face of both.
Sketches of NGC 6822, 6925, and 6384
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