3MN: every pilgrimage reveals something about home.
Happy 3-Minute Thursday!
You are busy, so let's make this quick. No fluff, no filler, no spamming. This newsletter will help you think in the best way and be a Christian on purpose.
💬 In the next three minutes:
☝️ A thought experiment that is out of this world.
✌️A billionaire's opinion about the future of existence.
👌 A reflection and exercise to appreciate our home planet.
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🪐 Minute 1 - are we called to fill the Earth AND Mars?
We live in an age of wonder, where the boundaries of Earth seem more porous than ever before. With the evolution of rockets and mock Mars training facilities, our reach and imagination extends beyond the atmosphere.
But why do we explore space? I believe it is our calling to explore and discover what lies beyond our planet. But we are not alone on this journey; we travel with a host of other creatures—the animals, plants, and even bacteria that coexist with us and play a vital role in our lives. Our interdependence with these species requires us to understand the moral and technical aspects of space exploration.
The biblical command to "be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it" takes on new meaning as we explore Mars and extend our dominion beyond Earth. Are we called to fill not only Earth but also the heavens? Does our responsibility extend to other worlds and their potential inhabitants?
🔥 Minute 2 - a billionaire's prophecy about humanity.
I was playing a board game earlier this week that is themed around the concept of terraforming the Red Planet. The concept got me thinking more and more about the future of Earth and humanity's part in it. Leading the charge of modern space exploration is a familiar name to most, Elon Musk.
Here are his thoughts,
“The future of humanity is going to bifurcate in two directions: Either it’s going to become multi-planetary, or it’s going to remain confined to one planet, and eventually, there’s going to be an extinction event.”
🌿 Minute 3 - a reflection and exercise to appreciate our home planet.
Every pilgrimage reveals something about home. Thinking about systems in space helps us understand similar systems on Earth, how we depend on other species, and how they depend on us. It shows us that we are part of a larger whole and that God has a plan for all of it.
Space travel reminds us of God’s care for the lily and the sparrow. It brings us face to face with a plan for salvation that does not end at humanity. Our final destination will be reached in community, one species among many amid worlds without end.
👉 Here is an exercise you can do to bring this closer to home.
- Find a quiet place and think about how going on a journey can teach us about where we come from.
- Imagine what makes you feel at home and how you are connected to the world around you, like plants and animals.
- Imagine yourself traveling through space, seeing different systems and creatures, and how they depend on each other.
- Go outside for a walk in nature and watch how different plants and animals interact with each other to survive.
- Learn more about the plants and animals you see and how they all work together in nature.
- Think about how these connections in nature relate to our own lives and how we can take care of the environment.
- Choose something you care about in the environment and find a way to help, like volunteering or supporting a cause.
- Reflect on how your actions make a difference and share your experience with others to inspire them.
- Make small changes in your daily life to help the environment, like recycling or talking to others about why it's important.
VERSE OF THE WEEK 🔥
P T L T: "O F I H, H B Y N. Y K C, Y W B D, O E A I I I H."
Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." - Matthew 6:9-10
Until next week,
Payton Minzenmayer
p.s - Add your name to a Europa-bound NASA spacecraft.