Maybe you heard recently that the Earth’s rotation appears to have sped up a little. Jennifer laughed at me when I told her. But that’s only because I was in the early stages of a migraine when I mentioned it, and I blamed my crackling brain on the whole world suddenly accelerating.

Apparently, scientists have been tracking the phenomenon for years. It seems that some days have been ending a fraction of a millisecond sooner than they used to. Like a gazillion other wonders in the natural world, they still don’t know why it’s happening. Some say it’s because of changes in ocean currents. Others suggest it’s due to variations in atmospheric pressure (which I’m certain is responsible for my migraines). But whatever it is, in the end, it’s not something any of us would actually notice while making breakfast or driving to work. However, in the more precise world of atomic clocks, even these tiny shifts are enough to spark curiosity.

Of course, it’s easy to laugh at these things as whimsical. But it’s obscure bits of information like these that remind me just how fascinating God’s handiwork really is. Our planet is not a static stage beneath our feet. It’s part of a vast choreography, spinning, tilting, and gliding through space in concert with the sun, moon, planets, and stars.

Based on something Jennifer shared with me recently, it seems that every so often, the great dancers of our solar system move into rare, harmonious formations that catch our attention and, perhaps, set before us in unmistakable terms the divine order woven into the chaos. What I mean is that just this past week, on August 10, six of our solar system’s planets gathered along a single line, forming a planetary alignment. To the naked eye, it appeared as if these distant worlds had agreed on a meeting place, shining together in the same stretch of sky like old friends who rarely get to visit together. I looked it up. A planetary alignment is not necessarily unprecedented. They happen from time to time. The next one is February 28, 2026. Seven planets will align on that day.  Still, the rarity lies in their visibility and timing. For me, a guy who is consciously looking at everything through the lens of the Gospel, it’s another reminder that so much around me is keeping a schedule that I didn’t set, and yet it’s one that, even if I wanted to push against it, I’m inevitably bound to follow.

If you’ve ever stood beneath a dark, unpolluted sky and just looked, I’d be willing to bet you were moved in some way. It’s hard not to be. Jennifer and I went out onto our deck and took pictures of the Northern Lights last spring, and then again in June. Admittedly, it was pretty amazing. Especially when you realize what’s causing those multihued streaks. They happen when charged particles from the sun, carried along on solar winds, slam into Earth’s magnetic field and collide with the atmosphere’s protective layers. The collisions become bursts of light in greens, pinks, purples, and reds, painting the sky like an undulating canvas. It’s already breathtaking from our deck in Linden. And yet, Jennifer wants to visit a dark park, which is a reserved area where artificial light is largely restricted, set aside for seeing the night sky free from light pollution. Jen showed me images taken in dark parks. We’re so used to light pollution, we don’t know what we’re missing until we see it. And when we do, it’s breathtaking.

For me, I’m not necessarily moved by the vastness of space. I’m more astounded that the heavens above me are not random. They operate under laws that have held since the beginning, laws that both govern and reveal the Creator’s design. These are the same laws that govern the tides, the seasons, the migrations of birds, and probably so many other things we’ll never even know.

But this carries me further, especially as we get closer to our forthcoming conference on October 4. Along with folks like Trey Gowdy, Dr. James Lindsay, and William Federer, we’ll also hear from Chloe Cole.

Now, before I say anything more about her, it’s worth noting that what I’ve written so far, whether about planets or humans, ultimately comes down to the same foundation: natural law. Just as the heavenly bodies move according to fixed principles, so too does human life. And both flourish when aligned with natural law’s order. Sure, we can ignore that order, setting aside laws we don’t like for this or that ridiculous reason—say, we don’t want to use Kepler’s Law because someone named Kepler once hurt our feelings. But do this while engineering a satellite and you’re destined for failure. Your plans might look neat on paper, but in reality, you’re going to end up designing something that’ll likely get destroyed before leaving the Earth’s atmosphere. And if it does make it into space, it’ll immediately become nothing more than a piece of space junk hurling toward who knows what.

In other words, your opinions do not affect reality. Reality is constant, steady, and unshaken by what it carries in its calculations.

As a young teenager, Chloe began questioning her gender identity, and instead of being guided with care and patience, she was rushed into “gender-affirming care.” This included puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and ultimately a double mastectomy—all while she was still a developing child. At the time, she was assured these interventions would solve her struggles and bring her peace. Instead, they left her with deep regret, permanent physical changes, and a realization that she had been led down a path built on ideology rather than truth.

Now, still only twenty years old, Chloe has become one of the most outspoken voices in the nation, warning about the dangers of pushing minors into irreversible medical procedures. She speaks with a rare combination of clarity, courage, and compassion—sharing not only her own painful experience, but also urging others to protect children from similar harm. Her testimony is more than a cautionary tale. It’s a living and breathing example of what happens when a society rejects the natural order God has established.

It’s also a demonstration of the hope inherent in returning to it.

For those who will hear her in person, I think that the impact will go far beyond what anyone might normally experience from headlines or soundbites. Chloe’s presence among us—her vulnerability, and also her ability to speak truth without bitterness, even as she continues to be relentlessly attacked for her detransition—it gives her story a weight that must be experienced in person. Essentially, she embodies everything I just described. She’s living proof that when we live in step with God’s design, not in defiance of it, there is hope for restoration, even after deep hurt—even after it seems like we’ve already hurled our satellite into deep space. Her journey reminds us that truth isn’t an abstract principle. In fact, in her case, it not only governs her existence, but God also put it in place as a lifeline. She reached out to grab what was real and found her way back to a better life.

Now she wants that for others who are suffering from the same dysphoria. By God’s grace, she has discovered a world she didn’t know existed, and yet, was already there. In that world—the real world of faith—she was pulled into Christ’s gravitational embrace. And within that embrace, she discovered a courage to reach out and pull others in, too.

In the end, whether we’re talking about the Earth’s rotation, the precise timing of planetary orbits, or the moral order woven into human existence, the truth remains the same. Reality is fixed because its Author is unchanging (Hebrews 13:8). The heavens declare this with every sunrise and celestial alignment (Psalm 19:1). And lives like Chloe’s affirm the otherworldly blessings and strength God grants to those who, by the power of the Holy Spirit given by the Gospel, turn to Him in repentance and faith, choosing to walk in His ways rather than their own (Isaiah 40:31, Proverbs 3:5–6). It’s this loving God, the One who keeps the planets in motion and the seasons in balance (Genesis 8:22, Job 38:33), who is also holding our lives in His hands (Isaiah 41:10), desiring us to live in harmony with His design (Micah 6:8). And when we do, whether in the wonder of a night sky or the courageous witness of a life recalibrated, we find ourselves anchored in His truth and, ultimately, aligned with His eternal purpose: the salvation of our soul (2 Corinthians 4:18, John 3:16-17, John 6:40).

If you have yet to register for the conference, you can do so by visiting: https://www.bodyofchristandthepublicsquare.org. Do so soon. Space is limited.