When a sunset is more than just a sunset

by Pete Berardi

Psalms 19:1
The heavens declare the glory of God, the firmament showeth his handiwork.

Living here in San Diego definitely has its advantages. The weather is consistently seventy degrees and sunny. The winter is fairly short and extremely mild. We have a gorgeous stretch of beach that lasts for miles.

Recently I stood on the shore line and watched the sunset. It was only one of a thousand that I have seen, but yet it was unique in its own way. When the sun sets into the ocean it almost seems as if it will never get there. The experience is a slow anticipation. One peculiar thing about sunsets in San Diego is that they rarely can be experienced alone. Normally, sunsets attract a crowd and are similar to a Broadway show with applause and whistling afterward. Everyone seems to be enthralled, with their eyes glued to the horizon, as if the sun occasionally would do a sing and dance and they didn’t want to miss it.

On this particular sunset, as with many, I was in awe. It is very common that I think about God during them because of their beauty. I selfishly often think that God created this sunset especially for me and that he was using it to give me a message. There are so many science books in publication that “preach” the theory of the big bang. They claim that our universe was created billions of years ago by an explosion of a star. I simply cannot accept this. The exquisite perfection of the sun setting in the horizon does not allow me to cheapen the whole experience by giving its credit to an “accident”.

God is the creator of the universe, without a doubt. There are thousands of books in publication that will give multiple examples of the intricacies in our universe which somehow explain the theory ( intelligent design. These theories claim that there is a supernatural force that is behind all of creation. I cannot stand by this theory either. The design of the universe is much greater than intelligent, it is divine. God in his divine wisdom created the unmatched pulchritude in the simplicity of the sun setting into its resting place.

The Bible says that the firmament shows the handiwork of God and I stand by this theory. If you are a believer and have ever watched a sunset, you know exactly what I mean. If you are not a believer, I urge you to look at your next sunset with God in mind. Let his own creation speak to you that you might understand that He created it for you that you might understand. Solomon, the wisest man in the world, wrote in Proverbs “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (vv. 9:10). Let a beautiful sunset be even more so by letting be a tool of the Lord.