It weighed a little over 183 pounds and was less than 25 inches wide. Scores of people crowded to try and get a glimpse of it. It was the most amazing thing anyone had ever seen. Nothing in the world had ever been built that could compare to the amazement of what this small object held as people anxiously jostled for a chance to see it. The pyramids were spectacular, but only a few thousand people a year made the trip to see them. The Empire State building was magnificent with a glorious view, but again the crowds were minimal to the millions that wanted to get a look at this small simple object.
It was a Friday night in October when it came to our town. In Texas Friday night is big with hundreds of football games across the state. But the buzz that night was not the game. It was what was coming to town. The big problem was that it was to arrive after the ballgame had already started. The dilemma of choice was tough, should we miss the game to see it or not? Others made plans to see it after the game was over, but it was still on their minds throughout the game. Parents were telling their children about it and it was exciting that it was coming to our town.
I remember seeing it for the first time. We actually got to see it before we headed off to the game. “There it is” someone cried out, but it was a false alarm, so we continued to wait. Then there standing in the dark someone pointed upward and shouted “Look over there!” This time it was there right before our eyes. We all stood in silence and watched as it moved across the sky, a simple white streak of light, barely visible to the naked eye. Amazing! Fantastic! Wow!
It was October 4, 1957 and its name was Sputnik, the first manmade object put into orbit around the earth. There was really nothing to it compared to what takes place today, but to that generation it was a marvel of man’s achievement. It was a mere speck in the universe that circled the earth every 98 minutes.It didn’t do much, but it started the “race for space” that eventually put men on the moon and routinely now sends men up and back again. Now there is talk of even going deeper into God’s universe.
Great events don’t always start out great, but many times begin small and grow into greatness. It’s the same with people. The great people of history did not all start out great. Men like Moses, David, Joseph, Peter, Paul and many others of the Bible were simple ordinary people that God used to do great things upon this earth. No one said look there’s Moses, but when God used him to part the sea his name went down in history. David was a simple shepherd, but when he downed Goliath people wrote songs about him. The Bible teaches us that God can do great things using the ordinary, simply because “He” is great.
We often dwell on our weaknesses. We spend time looking at how little we are instead of the great things God can do in us. Most importantly we fail to see that when we do little things for God it can quickly spread and be something great for him.
Tonight as I walk outside and look up into the sky, I will no longer see Sputnik, but I will still behold the great heavens built by God in which it took its journey.
It was a Friday night in October when it came to our town. In Texas Friday night is big with hundreds of football games across the state. But the buzz that night was not the game. It was what was coming to town. The big problem was that it was to arrive after the ballgame had already started. The dilemma of choice was tough, should we miss the game to see it or not? Others made plans to see it after the game was over, but it was still on their minds throughout the game. Parents were telling their children about it and it was exciting that it was coming to our town.
I remember seeing it for the first time. We actually got to see it before we headed off to the game. “There it is” someone cried out, but it was a false alarm, so we continued to wait. Then there standing in the dark someone pointed upward and shouted “Look over there!” This time it was there right before our eyes. We all stood in silence and watched as it moved across the sky, a simple white streak of light, barely visible to the naked eye. Amazing! Fantastic! Wow!
It was October 4, 1957 and its name was Sputnik, the first manmade object put into orbit around the earth. There was really nothing to it compared to what takes place today, but to that generation it was a marvel of man’s achievement. It was a mere speck in the universe that circled the earth every 98 minutes.It didn’t do much, but it started the “race for space” that eventually put men on the moon and routinely now sends men up and back again. Now there is talk of even going deeper into God’s universe.
Great events don’t always start out great, but many times begin small and grow into greatness. It’s the same with people. The great people of history did not all start out great. Men like Moses, David, Joseph, Peter, Paul and many others of the Bible were simple ordinary people that God used to do great things upon this earth. No one said look there’s Moses, but when God used him to part the sea his name went down in history. David was a simple shepherd, but when he downed Goliath people wrote songs about him. The Bible teaches us that God can do great things using the ordinary, simply because “He” is great.
We often dwell on our weaknesses. We spend time looking at how little we are instead of the great things God can do in us. Most importantly we fail to see that when we do little things for God it can quickly spread and be something great for him.
Tonight as I walk outside and look up into the sky, I will no longer see Sputnik, but I will still behold the great heavens built by God in which it took its journey.
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