Have you ever sat and contemplated how the universe and our solar system are configured? I have, and it’s really quite fascinating!
Our solar system consists of eight planets (nine if you’re reluctant to accept the recent demotion of Pluto) as well as numerous moons, all revolving around the star that we know as the sun. Each of the planets and their respective moons lie at varying distances from the sun. First you have Mercury and Venus, both of which have surface temperatures so high that the possibility of them being able to support life is virtually nil.
Towards the nether regions of the solar system lie the gaseous giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. These massive planets are so far away from the sun that they receive very little light and heat, which makes the possibility of them being able to support life as we know it extremely unlikely as well. Mars lies close enough to the sun that it could possibly support life of various types, but we’re fairly certain that anything larger than microbes doesn’t exist there (at least right now).
And then we have earth, our home planet. It lies at a distance from the sun that isn’t too close or too far away – it is “just right”. This “Goldilocks” planet that we call home is approximately 93 millions miles from the sun, which apparently is the perfect distance to not only allow life to survive here, but indeed flourish. Unlike the rest of our solar system neighborhood, earth has been teeming with life of numerous types and complexities for eons!
Many people believe that this wonderful planet attained it’s perfect position in the solar system by mere chance. I do not. I believe that when God “created the heavens and the earth”, He had everything “mapped out” and that He carefully placed the earth exactly where he knew it needed to be in order to support the amazing variety of living organisms (creatures) that He would soon be creating.
It is my belief that the “Goldilocks” planet received its perfect location by design, not by chance. The greatest architect, mathematician, inventor and astronomer the universe has ever known had the blueprints for His magnificent “heavens and earth” tucked away in His mind, and during the creation period He simply spoke them into existence. And after completing each step, He admired His handiwork and “saw that it was good”.