“Houston, we’ve had a problem,” were the words of Jim Lovell on the evening of 13 April 1970. Nearly fifty-six hours into the mission to the moon, an explosion aboard the spacecraft plunged the crew into a fight for their survival. Within less than a minute there was a cascade of systems failures throughout the spacecraft. “It was all at one time – a monstrous failure,” said NASA’s flight controller.
The spacecraft looped around the moon, using its gravity to return to earth. Millions of people followed the drama on television. Eventually, the capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean near Tonga.
‘Although the mission was not a success from a conventional perspective, it was a triumph of ingenuity and determination,’ wrote Paul Rincon, science reporter for the BBC in an article headed ‘Apollo 13: From Disaster to Triumph’. Jim Lovell said that it showed the people of the world that even if there was a great catastrophe it could be turned into a success.
The supreme example of triumph coming out of apparent catastrophe is the cross. What seemed to the world to be the ultimate defeat, was in fact the ultimate triumph. The crucifixion of Jesus shows that God can be glorified in what appears to be a defeat. This is the moment of Jesus’ greatest triumph.
Source: Nicky Gumbel, Bible in One Year – Alpha, Day 150 of 365
“Houston, we’ve had a problem,” were the words of Jim Lovell on the evening of 13 April 1970. Nearly fifty-six hours into the mission to the moon, an explosion aboard the spacecraft plunged the crew into a fight for their survival. Within less than a minute there was a cascade of systems failures throughout the spacecraft. “It was all at one time – a monstrous failure,” said NASA’s flight controller.
The spacecraft looped around the moon, using its gravity to return to earth. Millions of people followed the drama on television. Eventually, the capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean near Tonga.
‘Although the mission was not a success from a conventional perspective, it was a triumph of ingenuity and determination,’ wrote Paul Rincon, science reporter for the BBC in an article headed ‘Apollo 13: From Disaster to Triumph’. Jim Lovell said that it showed the people of the world that even if there was a great catastrophe it could be turned into a success.
The supreme example of triumph coming out of apparent catastrophe is the cross. What seemed to the world to be the ultimate defeat, was in fact the ultimate triumph. The crucifixion of Jesus shows that God can be glorified in what appears to be a defeat. This is the moment of Jesus’ greatest triumph.
Source: Nicky Gumbel, Bible in One Year – Alpha, Day 150 of 365
