When the first Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin announced in 1961 that he had not seen God in space, a twelve-year-old girl from Gothenburg in Sweden wrote him the following: “Dear cosmonaut Gagarin, I have heard that you have been in space and say that you have not seen God. May I ask you if you have a pure heart?” (Matthew 5, 8)
Apollo 15 astronaut James Irwin had a completely different reaction. He said: “I realized on the moon that it was more important that Jesus Christ put his foot on the earth than man put his foot on the moon!”
He went on to say: “We only ever see what our heart allows us to see. We can see God’s glory, his love and his blessings – in space and on earth – when we have God in our hearts. In my life, I have experienced time and again how God has met me and spoken to me.”
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
Matthew 5, 8
Text of the week: Matthew 5, 1-12
How happy are you in your heart?
