June 29 – Glory Be! Beneath the River of Stars!

The Milky Way, a perennial favorite for night photographers, stretches across the Northland sky from late winter through autumn. On this calm June morning at Split Rock State Park, I sat along the shoreline as waves gently brushed the beach and fireflies flickered in the darkness. It was 3 a.m., yet instead of fatigue, I felt fully awake—drawn in by the wonder unfolding overhead.

In moments like this, it’s impossible not to feel humbled by the vastness above. The Milky Way—our home galaxy—contains more than 100 billion stars and spans roughly 100,000 light-years across. What we see here is its dense central band, a distant river of light made visible on the clearest nights.

Standing beneath it, you feel both small and deeply connected. The same creation that stretches beyond comprehension also reaches into the quiet of this shoreline, into this moment.

“He determines the number of the stars; He gives to all of them their names.” — Psalm 147:4

Give thanks for the beauty of His creation, which not only inspires awe but gently points us back to Him.