TO THE MOON AND BACK

Message from the Moon

I’m a colonist, and I’m glad my ancestors colonized America. In fact, many came to the eastern shores to escape religious persecution. At first, they were being forced to become Catholic, and later, they were being forced to become Protestant. Eventually, they were required to join the state church. At the same time, however, with the invention of the printing press, Bibles became available for ordinary people to read for themselves. As a result, when Martin Luther posted the 95 Theses in 1517, many came to understand that God’s salvation from sin and death was free. So, when the Americas were discovered, brave souls chose to leave behind what they knew and establish a new kind of society.

Today, however, society is again growing dark. Because of this, some wonder if it is time to leave once more—to establish a new kind of society on the Moon and on Mars. Personally, I find myself looking forward to the day when the Moon and Mars are colonized.

Even so, there are those who are convinced we are meant to remain on Earth. They argue that we should focus on solving the problems here. Yet, at the same time, as Jesus said, “For you always have the poor with you…”

Meanwhile, space exploration promises new opportunities—advances in communication, discoveries of water and minerals, greater understanding of climate, new career paths, and technologies we have yet to imagine. Still, this raises an important question: how did our ancestors deal with the fear of stepping into the unknown? And likewise, how should we deal with fear in our own time?

In a recent example, Butch Wilmore, the astronaut who was “stuck in space,” explained that he dealt with fear by trusting that God was with him. Because of that, he recognized that fear was not his friend and refused to let it drive his decisions. Instead, he fell back on his training and focused on the next step of the job. In other words, he did not allow his mind to dwell on fear—he chose not to entertain it.

Ultimately, the question is not whether there will be fear—there always has been. From those who crossed the ocean to those who now look toward the stars, uncertainty has never disappeared. What truly matters, then, is how we respond to it. As Butch Wilmore reminds us, fear is not a guide; it is something to be acknowledged but not obeyed. Like them, we move forward not because the path is safe, but because it is right. We trust in God, rely on what we have learned, and take the next step in front of us. Whether building a new life on distant shores or someday on the Moon and Mars, the call is the same: not to retreat from darkness, but to carry light into it.

With that in mind, the words of Epistle to the Philippians remind us of our direction forward:

Philippians 3:13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.