We are not alone
Image: Albert Antony on Unsplash
Recently I returned to my favourite place. I had not been there for some time, so it was good to be back.
The place was my local cinema. It had been a few months since I reclined in the luxurious leather seats, phone off, coffee and sweets on my little table, all set to be immersed in the big screen and big sound!
I went to see the latest film by Stephen Spielberg, ‘Disclosure Day’. It’s a story about aliens coming to earth, a favourite subject of Mr Spielberg, who also made ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’, ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ and ‘War of the Worlds’.
In promotional interviews the legendary filmmaker spoke of his belief in life beyond planet earth and how that has inspired him to make films like this over the years.
The idea of aliens, or intelligent life, somewhere in the universe has been, and still is, a vibrant topic of conversation.
It seems to me, that people want to believe that we are not alone and that there is something beyond, something unknown out there.
This is not a new thought, as the book of Acts records that when Paul was in Athens…
“Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.”
The residents of Athens believed in many gods, and to be on the safe side, they had a space for an unknown god. Paul saw that and told them who it was – the Living God, who had transformed his life.
In our church we recently completed the Alpha Course, which introduces people to the Christian faith. One guest shared that they thought there was ‘something’ out there, and we suggested that it is the God of the Bible, who Christian’s worship.
The guest was open for us to pray that God would make Himself known, and He did, in a way that was undeniable!
I believe we are not alone in the universe. I’m not sure about aliens, but I am convinced God is there, and that He can be known by people like you and me.
God bless you:)
Gary Bastin
Hope Community Church leader