“To boldly go where no man has gone before!” for decades we humans have sent signals and probes into the universe, attempting to connect with intelligent life beyond. 50 years ago, Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon and in 1971 Alan Shepard hit his stratospheric golf shot. Yet, in these 70 years we’ve had no word back, except amazing photos & data.
That’s not to say there isn’t life yonder in another galaxy, but as far as we know, ‘This is it!’ This amazing earth ball, hurtling around the Sun, is the locus and focus for God’s great plan, ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told!’ Oh, it’s full of blood & guts, intrigue & mystery, grief & glory, but here we are on planet earth, privileged to explore and experience views of beauty that took millions of years to fashion. Here we are gripped by gravity and grace, able to say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to God’s loving desire and design for us, with the ‘response’ ability to receive or reject the outpouring of God’s love in Christ’s life, death and resurrection.
It’s the remarkable consistency and constancy of the seasons of winter, spring, summer & autumn, which inspire me to write today. As Louis Armstrong sings, “And I think to myself, what a wonderful world!”
I’m humbled to feel the warmth of God’s love lit upon me and to know that, here on this spinning sphere, in and through us humans, God is working out his special purpose. Given 2 sentences, how would define what life 
is all about? Two words are enough for me, ‘Loving Relationships’ (with God, Creation, Self, and Others, as far as it depends on me / us).
As Psalm 8 says,
“God, brilliant Lord, yours is a household name. Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs that drown out enemy talk, and silence atheist babble.
I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous, your handmade sky-jewelry,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings. Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
Why do you bother with us? Why take a second look our way?
Yet we’ve so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden’s dawn light. You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge, Made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild, birds flying and fish swimming, whales singing in the ocean deeps. God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world.”
As St Augustine said, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” Ancient learning puts it, “Our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” We were made by God and for God, and until we appreciate that, life never quite makes sense. But, oh the depth of intimacy, significance and purpose, flowing from knowing Jesus as your Saviour & Lord, Father-God as your Maker & Mover, and the Holy Spirit as the one to bring God’s peace, purpose & plans home to your soul, FAITH becomes a ‘Fabulous Adventure in Trusting Him’.
