“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.” – Psalm 8:1
We are truly living in different times. One of the most challenging things of our new normal is our limited mobility. Since COVID-19 became a household name, we have limited our travel, our time in public, and mostly, we have done our best to stay home.
This has been difficult for so many people. Humanity is social. We need one another. We also have the desire to travel, to explore, to see beyond our normal surroundings. When COVID-19 arrived, those of us who enjoy an adventure every now and then, found ourselves longing to explore, but staying home.
When I read about the recent adventure of Dr. Kathy Sullivan, I was reminded why it is good for our soul to travel and explore. Dr. Sullivan is a geologist by training. She has had a distinguished career, including serving as the Charles A. Lindbergh Chair of Aerospace History at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Until recently, Dr. Sullivan’s greatest adventure came as a NASA astronaut. She flew on three Space Shuttle missions and made history as the first woman to walk in space.
Dr. Kathy Sullivan’s adventures did not stop when she returned to earth. Recently, Dr. Sullivan explored another passion – the ocean. She boarded the Limiting Factor, a deep submersible, and traveled to the bottom of Challenger Deep, the deepest part of the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific Ocean. After completing her trip, Dr. Kathy Sullivan became the first person to travel to the deepest point on earth and to outer space. What an adventure!
These challenging times have caused us to limit our travel, our experience, and our adventures. With so many uncertainties, it is understandable to be cautious. However, while we are being cautious, we must look to find ways to be adventurous. We were created to live life to the fullest. Our God-given imagination causes us to look to the stars or the vast ocean. What adventure lies ahead of you? Stay safe, but go somewhere new, try something for the first time. There is a joy that is found when we look behind our limitation and seek a new adventure.
– Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
