I looked around my office for a small package that resembled a box of cereal. If I had been doing this at home, finding a cereal box would have been no problem, but I was at the office, and there was only 30 minutes until the climax of the event. The video said to outline the bottom of the box on a sheet of white paper, cut it out, and place it inside the bottom of the box to serve as a projection screen. Then it said to cut two holes in the top of the box and place aluminum foil over one of them, while leaving the other open for viewing. Aluminum foil was another hard-to-come-by material at the office, but the box I was using actually had a printer cartridge wrapped in reflective foil-like material inside. So I cut a right-sized square from it and taped it over one of the holes. I then cut a hole in the foil with scissors, and my 5th-grade style eclipse viewer was complete. I headed outside.
At first I couldn't get the small hole to reflect onto the projection screen in my box, so I moved it around at different angles, peering into the view hole as I did. I probably looked a little odd standing out in the parking lot of our office building in broad daylight peering into an empty cardboard box with foil over the top, and moving it around as if I had lost something deep inside. But I was on a mission, and my dignity was taking a backseat.
When I finally saw the reflection of the sun, it was a little odd shaped, and not like the perfectly round circle with a crescent shape I had seen in the video. So I took it back inside and covered the original hole, replacing it this time with a smaller hole made with just the tip of a pen. Heading back outside, I held the box up to my eyes...and there it was. My hard work had paid off. I was officially viewing a projection of the eclipse of the century, circa 2017.
Far and wide people saw it. Visit any major news outlet and you will see pictures of people gazing up at the sky, in perfect synchronicity, or peering into a box, hoping to catch a projected glimpse. Even the President and First Lady could be seen gazing heaven-ward with their protective glasses in place.
And to think, the sun is 400 times larger than the moon, and yet it's distance from earth is also 400 times farther than the moon - so that the smaller body can neatly eclipse the larger body from our earthly perspective. That's creative design, and perfectly planned. God is reaching out to His creation, showing off His reality in the perfectly circular bodies of His two heavenly time pieces. He is also illustrating His plan for reconciling mankind to Himself.
You couldn't watch the event without your heart beating faster, and without the realization of how small we are. You also couldn't escape the knowledge, however suppressed, that God is Who He says He is. One man planning to view the eclipse said he was "expecting to have a real sense of connection with the heavens."
Oh the magnitude of such a statement.
You see, one day every eye will witness the brightest and most glorious sight they have ever seen. It will dwarf today's events, but it will produce scenes that are similar. All eyes will instantly transfix towards heaven, faces will stream with tears, all knees will bow, and every tongue will confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord.
At that point there will be no going back. No chance to review video and pictures of the celestial event to decide what to think about it. Time will standstill, and eternal destinations will be set.
But today we have the chance to respond to God's beckoning, and to experience a total eclipse of the heart. You see, Jesus' sacrifice on the cross allows Him to stand between you and God, making full payment for your sins. He stands ready as your advocate before the the Father, but you have to allow Him in. He's reaching out to you. Knocking on the door of your heart. All you have to do is surrender, giving Him full control and access to every aspect of your being. If you want to know how, it's as simple as this:
"If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved." (Romans 10:9-10, NIV)
Experience the Eclipse of the Century today in your own heart. If you do, you'll be ready to greet the Eclipse of the Ages with open arms.
Lance Borden is Director of Marketing and Ministry Relations at Totally Transformed Ministries, as well as President of the Board of Directors. You can follow him on Twitter @lanceborden, or email him here.