Today’s Devotional Theme
Hotter in the Summer
Daily Scripture
Genesis 8:22
“While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, day and night shall not cease.”
Encouragement
“Why is summer hotter than other times of the year?” Many people, both adults and kids, have been asked this question in various surveys. The most common answer by far, knowing that the earth’s orbit around the sun is elliptical or egg shaped, is that the earth is closest to the sun in summertime. In fact, the opposite is true: the distance from earth to sun is shortest in the winter! When confronted with this fact, looks of puzzlement cross many faces. A few people may venture in a weak voice, “Um, then the sun must get hotter during summer?” No, the temperature of our sun hardly varies over years and even decades. The above answers are perfectly logical ones, based on a limited amount of information. That’s how the ancient Greeks came up with their explanations. They were short on physical knowledge but masters of logical reasoning. That’s the best they could do – advance reasonable but frequently wrong explanations – given that they didn’t know that much about the world around them. How about the ancient Hebrews, did they do any better? Well, they knew a lot about the natural world, but “why” questions were mostly irrelevant to a Semitic farmer who knew from the calendar and the position of the sun in the sky at midday and the constellations at night when to plant and when to harvest. His well-being and that of his family depended on observing and heeding the normal cycles of the earth. Sorry, but I’m not going to take the space to explain the right reason for why summer is hotter. Here’s a hint, though: it’s wrapped up in the tilt of the earth’s orbit.
Take Action!
God knew that man needs regular variations in things like the different climates during the year to sustain him. And ancient societies, the Hebrews in particular, used their knowledge of the timing of seasons to grow grapes and grain, raise sheep, and come up with ways to sustain themselves and even prosper from nature. With our gains in scientific knowledge, we can correctly explain many of the “whys” that focused the Greeks’ attention. But perhaps even more importantly, our well-being cries for us to heed the normal cycles of our environment as the Hebrews did, using our natural resources responsibly and conserving them.
Come into His Presence
Lord God, I rejoice in the beauty and wonder of the natural world. I thank You for giving us the tools to uncover the amazing interplay of forces that shape our world and universe. At the same time, I understand that we’re expected to take care and use responsibly what You’ve provided for us to thrive as Godly people. Thank You for all Your gifts. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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