Journey to the Center of the Universe

By Julio Cesar Prado

The ambition of the nations struggling for space supremacy knows no limits. The first spaceman was the Soviet Yuri Gagarin, who, aboard the Vostok-1, remained in orbit for 108 minutes on April 12, 1961. The United States, in turn, released John Glenn on February 20, 1962. It was also the Soviets who launched the first woman into space, Valentina Tereshkova, on June 16, 1963. She orbited the Earth for more than 70 hours on Vostok-6.

Fifty years later, man has already launched thousands of artifacts around the Earth. Satellites weighing more than a ton serve a wide variety of purposes. The big victory, however, was Apollo 11’s descent onto the lunar surface on July 20, 1969. By planting the American flag on the Moon, astronauts Neil Armstrong and his colleague Edwin Aldrin Jr. uttered phrases like, “This is one small step for man, but one giant step for mankind.”

There has been a veritable war between the US and Russia in terms of the space race so far. Dreams and ambitions are many. The spirit of adventure, mixed with fierce competition, is the driving force. How far will the competitors go? How many lives will be lost on these test flights? No matter how scientific progresses, man will never reach the outer limits of the universe.

Under current conditions, our innovations for space travel will always be confined to a small area compared to the vastness of space. Furthermore, one cannot assume that human existence will improve as a result of the exorbitant expenditures made for space exploration when thousands perish from starvation here on Earth. With sadness, we are watching a game of interests in a real space roulette.

Already, the faithful Christian will not need to spend billions of dollars or even risk his or her life aboard a spacecraft to plow the sky toward the center of the universe, where God is. The largest space trip of all time is already scheduled for us, risk-free. Free registration is done through faith in Christ Jesus, the commander of the ship. With His own blood, He paved the way through the galaxies He created Himself, in order to take us from Earth to Heaven. The countdown has begun, but there are still openings. There is only one condition: accept divine forgiveness and live in this world as if you were already in the presence of God.

“And the years of eternity, as they roll, will bring richer and still more glorious revelations of God and of Christ … The great controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The entire universe is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast creation. From Him who created all, flow life and light and gladness, throughout the realms of illimitable space. From the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things, animate and inanimate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is love” (Great Controversy, p. 678).

About: Julio Cesar Prado is a journalist.