You never cease to amaze me, Lord! And thankfully, You never will!
It “blows my mind” to think that, even before You created the universe, You knew what I would be reading this morning. One more “something” to spur me on. To consider that those big thoughts swirling in my mind may be more than idle thoughts.
Perhaps they are BIG Dreams… fueled by GREAT Expectations. They certainly are… IF they’re from You, Lord!
This morning, I read something that led me to weep. With tears of Awe and Wonder! And tears of Joy and Worship!
Maybe I’m the only person on the planet who didn’t know what I discovered today. If so, that’s OK. Because You wanted me to discover it today, Lord!
On my 18th birthday — July 16, 1969 — the three Apollo 11 astronauts soared out of the Earth’s atmosphere. Four days later, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong landed on the moon.
I was watching them, along with the whole world. I will never forget Armstrong’s first words as he became the first human being to step onto the moon’s surface:
“That’s one small step for man… one giant leap for mankind.”
I just learned today what happened next: Holy Communion!
Aldrin wanted to honor You, Lord, in this moment of unprecedented human achievement. Because he knew it had happened by Your Amazing Grace. That’s why he silently read from Your Word as he ate the Bread and drank from the Cup:
“I am the Vine, you are the branches; whoever remains in Me and I in him will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without Me.” (John 15:5)
NASA blacked out that part of the broadcast. A lawsuit had been filed by atheist Madalyn Murray O’Hair following the reading from Genesis by the Apollo 8 astronauts.
There’s a sad footnote in Aldrin’s memoir. Looking back, he had second thoughts.
At the time, he could think of no better way to acknowledge the enormity of the experience than to give You thanks, Lord. Later, he thought perhaps he should not have chosen to celebrate Communion.
After all, they had gone to the moon in the name of all mankind — Christians, Jews, Muslims, animists, agnostics and atheists.
But isn’t that the point, Lord?
Isn’t that exactly what You did… when You went to the Cross? On behalf of all mankind — people of every faith and no faith — whether we know it (yet) or not?
“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:17)
“I am The Way and The Truth and The Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)
I didn’t know these truths in 1969. I do now. And it filled my “cup” to overflowing today to know that Your precious sacrifice for me — for all of us — was acknowledged on the surface of the moon!
You love us to the moon and back??? Give or take 15.5 billion light years??? 🙂
Awestruck,
Abba’s Girl