The night’s objective was relatively simple: find two galaxies in the Northern section of the celestial sphere and make a brief study.
Now I will say that the most endearing beauty in the evening to me is my wife. After a few decades of marriage, our love for each other is still alive. We are a pair of people meant to be together, but we are different people. Sometimes we supplement each other; sometimes we do the same thing in the same way; other times we do things entirely differently. Regardless, we are paired in a relationship. People that know us know we can be very different, but they see us as a couple–each one bringing something unique. In a sense, they see each of us better as a result of seeing us together. How is that?
When observing the heavens, objects are frequently appreciated because they are in a context that makes them contrast or compare to each other. I often observe a pair of objects rather than just one on most observing nights. There is something about observing two things that helps the study of each one. There is a spiritual application to this, but for now note the object and scripture of this first observation sheet, then go to the second sheet below.
The second object is another galaxy, but the way it appears is quite different. This galaxy view is nearly edge-on and it is not an orderly classic 
spiral. One side of the galaxy appears brighter and more dense than the other. The immediate star field is quite a bit different than field around NGC 2403 (above).
The pair of objects seen on the same evening gives an observer an immediate way to discern differences and similarities. With only one object, it is a little harder to just list its features but with another object in mind, not only are the differences noted, but the differences actually stimulate a little more observation of each object.
I have a friend that I worship with. We use guitars and voices. My voice is not that great, but somehow when we sing and worship together, the combination sounds better than each of us alone. We do better as a pair. As I mentioned in the opening, my wife and I are different people but our relationship in Christ and with each other makes better “music” than each of us alone.
There is something about the manner in which God created us that gives us an ability to observe and think about what we have seen. When we see two things and think about those things, we see more than two objects considered independently. Observing “paired” things enhances our understanding more than two independent things. Take the two scriptures that are part of the observing sheets. They are extracted from the same Psalm but express a “paired” concept. It is a good thing to have God show us the right path and to point us down that path, which is the point of Psalm 25 verse 4. However, it is not enough to see the path, one has to walk down it and learn on the way, which is the point of the next verse (5). Knowing something about God is not enough. Living what you know of Him proves that you know Him. And, I am not talking about being a full time minister, but having a life that follows God–regardless of vocation, education and location. The fuller understanding comes from considering both verses and their different emphases.
Many people claim to know God, but their lives don’t look any different than anyone else. People even claim to know Jesus Christ, but when you look at what they do, what they aspire to become, what their goals are, and how they spend time and money…does it reflect a path that is pointed out by God, or is it their own path? It might be hard to tell if you only look at one person or yourself, but when the observation is paired with someone or something else, now things can be seen a little better. Now a better conclusion can be reached because there is a larger context where things that constrast or seem similar can be assessed. So how would you pair an observation of yourself or a someone and make a determination: do they seem to know God or not? Are they following their own path or does that path seem to have God’s hand in it?
Many say they are “good” so they conclude that they are walking on God’s path. That is not the picture of a disciple of Jesus Christ in the Bible. What is “good” varies all over the waterfront. The issue is whether the path has God’s direction and we are walking down it. Remember the two galaxies in a simple observation of the heavens? Seeing these galaxies next to each other is what brings their details and differences into better focus. A spiritual walk can be brought into better focus the same way by taking an observation of a life (yours or someone else’s) and comparing it to what the Bible illustrates. So, take a look for yourself. Grab any of the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John). They are easy and fast to read but the content makes them far reaching into the soul. Look at Jesus, who is the express image of God to us, which is a paraphrase of part of Hebrews 1:3.
If your idea of God is sort of muddled or unclear compared to the clarity of these accounts, and you have determined your “goodness” from your own ideas, there is a real good chance you have never met Him in a personal way. This is where there is value is seeing your life paired with what is in the biblical accounts. The essence of “sin” is some thing or some way that is contrary to God. Reading the accounts shows you instance after instance of God’s view of things compared to peoples’ views. A person who seriously meets God or has a relationship with Him begins to find the truth in both verse 4 and verse 5 in Psalm 24.
It turns out that the walk of a believer is a continuous thing–change keeps happening as our walk, compared to God, continues to get adjusted. There is a confession of a wrong path or sin that a new believer often makes when meeting God, but that process never really stops, because the path of a believer is forever going down that path that God points out and the change in the believer’s life continues to occur. The changing does not stop on our part.
So what about your path? Is this kind of change happening? Do you really know Him?
A primary objective of most of our ministry and private lives is to encourage people to know the Lord Jesus Christ. If you don’t, making those paired observations of your life with the life of Christ or His disciples in the Gospel accounts is rather important. As you read any of them, what is Jesus like? What does He say? Who are His disciples and who are not? How can you tell? As you consider these things, plug your life into the scenes and do a paired evaluation: you and your path compared to His. Are they the same?
Our testimony is simple: we know the saving grace of Jesus Christ, and we continue to persevere to go down the path He has made for us. You can know that path just as certainly as we do. Even more important, the Lord is more than willing to point it out to each person who calls on Him. Each person is meant to consider life relative to God in order to assess where they are and where they are headed. It is not much different in terms of a process, except for being much more serious and wide in scope, than comparing two galaxies. Please do it.
If you do not know the reality of a personal relationship with God and don’t have anyone to talk to about it, feel free to contact us. We will talk with you. (You can use the contact button on the home page.)
Technical Note on the Observing Sheets of the Two Galaxies:
Both objects were observed using an 8 inch Schmidt Cassegrain telescope with a Hyperstar lens and an astro video camera. Each object was observed by watching the output video on a small high resolution monitor. The equivalent magnification, compared to an eyepiece, was about 57X, but the astro video sensitivity permits us to see much more than our eyes alone can see since the electronic chip in the video camera has more sensitivity than our eyes.
The objects were sketched in charcoal pencil on white paper but scanned and inverted (white and black reversed).
The observing disciplines for the heavens are relatively straightforward and are the same ones we teach teachers or leaders overseas and in the US. The heavens declare the glory of God and show His handiwork (Psalm 19:1). That is why we teach these skills and teach a biblical creation view of the universe.
