July 1999 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the most daring scientific experiments of the 20th century, the Lunar landing of the Apollo 11 spacecraft. Many today remember the dramatic landing onto the surface of the moon, and the steps taken gingerly out of the Eagle module by Neil Armstrong, then followed by Buzz Aldrin. We recall the now famous words of Armstrong which were broadcast live to over one billion people at the time, declaring the lunar landing as "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind".
A third astronaut was present on the historical mission, Michael Collins. Collins manned the Columbia recovery module, hovering 60 miles overhead as Aldrin and Armstrong walked the moon's surface. In his memoirs, Collins would later describe his viewpoint of the events, saying, "The moon I have known all my life, that two-dimensional, small disk in the sky, has gone away somewhere to be replaced by the most awesome sphere I have ever seen. To begin with, it is huge, completely filling our window. Second, it is three-dimensional." Collins would later say that he had few regrets about his lifeguard role on the historical mission, stating, "Clearly it was not the best seat. But there were three seats for 3 billion people. I was lucky to occupy one of those." The astronauts aboard Apollo 11 had a front row seat to history. Their perspective was unique and could never be duplicated. They realized the importance of their mission, and their place in history is secured and celebrated today.
For the Christian, we have a unique perspective of the world and the universe which many who walk among us fail to realize in their own lives. Every day we encounter those who don't recognize the power and control of God in our world, and His all-encompassing love. Even those in Christ can fall victim to failing to appreciate God's greatness. Those without a relationship with God suffer from a limited perspective of the awesome grace and mercy of our Lord. Habakkuk 3:3-4 tells us "His glory covers the skies, and his praise fills the earth. He is like a bright light. Rays of light shine from his hand, and there he hides His power."
Our God is a mighty force in our universe and is worthy of honor and praise. Today, let's remember that although we may never fly in a shuttle and walk on the surface of the moon, we have a God who has blessed us with so much more, on His flight through history.
