This post isn't about any event that happened, but a series of conversations have sparked my interest to write a post about something I'm passionate for. One of the first things I regrettably realized about this place is that science is not as loved as it is in my family back home. Unfortunately, in many Christian circles, there are bad connotations around science and oftentimes "those scientists" get a bad name.
What is science? Google's definition is:
"The intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment."
In my own words, science is how we interact (either through thinking about it or doing) with our world to study how it works. The definition sure doesn't seem sacrilegious. It's simply studying the world that God created, and as a Christian, finding God everywhere.
Romans 1:20 talks about how God's invisible qualities of eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen and understood from what has been made, and because of that people are without excuse to not know Him. Psalm 19:1 says "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands."
As Christians, we shouldn't be afraid to learn about science, but instead excited to discover all of the ways that God has revealed Himself to us.
One of the questions that the study of the universe brings up (at least for me) is "Why did God do it THAT way?" I have some examples... (If you have more insight than me, please feel free to comment!)
1. The human body will revert to a 25-hour sleep schedule with the absence of day and night. I've found this one in several places, and I wonder why God would make the world spin around in only 24 hours.
http://www.examiner.com/article/the-25-hour-day-cycle
2. We can see stars that are millions of light years away, but where was the time for that light to get here? Maybe God made an "old Earth" (which would also explain why rocks are dated for millions of years, if that is accurate), but WHY? Or maybe, Darwin had part of the puzzle right, and we did get here by evolution, but it wasn't "dumb luck" and accidents. Maybe, our God who is described as a potter in Jeremiah 18, made us in a more unique way than we imagined. Jeremiah 18:4 says "But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him." God was using the potter as an illustration to Jeremiah of Himself and how he would tear down Israel if they didn't repent. If God would wreck whole nations to rebuild them back into the way He wanted to, is it so impossible to consider that He would use a likewise way to create humans? Taking millions of years to mend and mold the people that would be in His image? Of course, most would like to read Genesis 1 thinking that a day equals a day...which it may very well have been that way. It's just an interesting thing to think about.
3. God made the universe so big (could be infinite? I looked this up and found different answers) that where we are right now, there is NO WAY to explore all of it. Why would God make such a big creation? Especially the parts of the universe that aren't observable from Earth... (basically most of it ;) ) This also raises questions about if God has made other creatures, or other worlds with something else out there! I find it arrogant to think we are the only ones out there. I believe that God's love has the capacity to outstretch over ANYTHING He creates, and if there are more worlds... I sure hope to find out in Heaven!
4. God gave humans a sexual desire that operates outside of a marriage, yet He has commanded that acting on it is permitted only inside of marriage. Why.
5. Going along with hormones, what about all of the chemicals that run our body? Why would God make how we feel measurable? Why would there be substances like serotonin and dopamine telling us how to feel? Why are there illnesses such as depression that are because of a unbalance of these? Do differences in brain chemistry affect our spiritual life?
6. We sense the world with our five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. Will there be more senses in Heaven? Are there actually more senses here that are in our minds so they can't be measured? For example, is hearing God's voice a "sense"?
Ok, it's midnight and that's as far as I'll go tonight. Go ahead to comment with insight or even more questions!
Our world is so mind-boggling, I'll always be wondering about something.
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