The recent journey of astronauts to the moon reminds me of an older member of our congregation who was involved in many ministries here. Born in 1914, her entire life was full of earth shattering and unbelievable changes. She loved to travel, was involved in many ministries, and was a voracious reader. When she read she always had a dictionary by her side, so that if she ran across a word she didn’t understand she could discover its meaning. Oh, and by the way, she was convinced that our astronauts really never landed on the moon, but was a hoax that was filmed in Hollywood. I never tried to dissuade her of that notion, and often wondered if she was just putting me on as a way of keeping me off balance. Her faith was unshakable, as was her thirst for knowledge. She could be as tough as nails but was also as loving as Jesus.
On Christmas Eve in 1968, the crew of Apollo 11, the first humans to orbit the moon read from Genesis during a broadcast that was watched live by millions (on our black and white television sets.) “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” On Easter of 2026, he crew of Artemis 2 was asked if they had any Easter message to send earth. The answer came back from one astronaut that no matter what one’s faith might be, the teachings of Jesus were a very simple message of love, for self and for others. He continued to affirm that earth was created as a special place for us to live, and the teaching of Jesus were that we were to live in love. In viewing images of planet earth from space it is interesting what a spiritual moment that is for our astronauts and how the only way to discuss the moment is in references to the awesomeness of God and the importance for his love in how we live with each other.
There is so much we think we know and so much we can’t wait to find out, and whether reading with a dictionary or traveling in space we keep returning to the basics. There are moments of clarity and dark struggles of doubt and yet what never changes is the reality and immensity of God’s creation and his call for us to learn that love is the most basic response to what in beyond our control. Every day is filled with surprises and incredible revelations. We wind up in places we have never been before and cling to our habits and need to control what is out of our control. It has been 58 years since humans orbited to the far side of the moon and then witnessed the rising and setting of the earth which must be so emotional words are inadequate to express such a sight. And the miracles of Creation, Christmas, and Easter continue to offer us the same incredible moments that are beyond our capacity to explain. The write of Hebrews helps us with the phrase, “Jesus is the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.” How that changes how we live even with all the spaces in life we don’t understand or can’t fully explain. Faith is what fills our empty spaces and keeps us close to what is more important than anything else — a creative and loving God.