Thought for the Month - June 2021
"We are not alone" by Barry Adair
Over the years, you may have noticed that I'm interested in the Cosmos. I think I have written a few Thoughts based on the wonders of the heavens. To me, our practically infinite Universe truly shows the awesomeness of the God who created it, including us in it.
The heavens declare His righteousness,
And all the peoples have seen His glory. (Psalm 97:6, speaking about God)
Now, the facts and figures concerning the Universe are simply mind-boggling. In fact, I'm not even going to mention how many billions of stars there are thought to be in the Universe because that number just keeps getting bigger and bigger as astronomers discover more and more. But the one thing that astronomers haven't discovered yet is any other form of life, i.e., apart from on a small blue planet which orbits an unremarkable star in the backwaters of the Milky Way galaxy.
The organisation tasked with finding life 'out there' is called SETI. It might sound like a sofa but is a shortened version for "the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence". Mind you, there was this one time that radio astronomers did receive a very interesting 'audio blip' on their recording tape. This was on a specific radio frequency that many scientists thought was a possible frequency which could be used by Extra-Terrestrials. It also came from a targeted galaxy which was thought to contain a solar system a little like our own. So impressive was that audio signal, that the radio astronomer in 1977 simply wrote "Wow!" on his paper readout. And to this day, the strange audio signal is simply referred to as the "Wow signal". Nearly 45 years later, not a single audio blip of this magnitude or duration has been recorded since.
If you are a Bible-believing Christian, you may not be that surprised by the title of this Thought, even when I refer to extra-terrestrials. The Bible records quite a few instances of human beings being visited by non-human intelligent beings. The Bible calls these visitors "angels". And I know of others, within this century, who firmly believe that an angel or angels helped them at a critical time in their life. Billions of dollars are spent every year searching for other intelligent beings. A read through of the Bible will affirm that other intelligent beings do exist, although they normally reside in the supernatural realm. But even better than that, the Bible explains that there is a supremely intelligent, all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving Creator God behind every single design in this Universe. We observe the scientific laws which govern the Universe, we visualise the blueprint of the early Universe, we marvel at the awesome natural designs in the heavens and all around, yet most miss the Great Designer behind all of it!
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)
I really should explain the choice of photo for this Thought too. It is called "the pale blue dot" and is a photograph of planet Earth taken in 1990 by the Voyager 1 space probe. It took it from a distance of 3.7 billion miles, just as the probe was about to exit our solar system. Our planet, at this distance, is represented by 1 blueish pixel set amongst the blackness of interstellar space. That one insignificant looking pixel represents everything that we know and have ever known in human existence! The reality hit me that, in cosmic terms, the earth is a very insignificant place indeed. Even from the edge of our own solar system, it is tiny. Viewed from everywhere further out, and that includes almost all of the Universe, it cannot be seen at all!
Yes, we may live on an insignificant blue dot in the vastness of interstellar space. And even in earthly terms, we may be one of almost 8 billion other human beings. And yet, let me tell you, to God you are very special indeed! And I want to leave you with the true story of the greatest Wow signal that this earth has ever witnessed. God sent His own Son, Jesus Christ, born as a baby and to die as a man. Jesus, as both God and man, lived a sinless life and offered up His life to pay for the sins of the human race! God allowed His sinless Son to die for the likes of you and me - Wow! This is the greatest signal of love that there has ever been, or will ever be. And my prayers for this Thought and every one of our Thoughts down through the years has been that the reader would know Jesus Christ as their own personal Saviour. Please consider this today and read the link at the bottom of this Thought to know more.
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (Romans 1:20)
All that's good, and great, and true,
All that is and is to be,
Be it old or be it new,
Comes, O Father, comes from Thee.
Fill us, then, with love divine;
Grant that we, though toiling here,
May in spirit, being Thine,
See and hear Thee everywhere.
(Godfrey Thring)
(All Bible quotations are from the NASB, unless stated)
Are you SURE that you have your place booked in Heaven? Read this if you're not!