July 21, 2019
But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
(1 John 2:5-6 ESV)
Astronaut Charlie Duke was the Capsule Communicator in Mission Control when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon. It was just under three years later that he would walk on the moon as an astronaut on Apollo 16.
It took Duke six years to the day, as he remembers, from his walk on the Moon to when he started walking with the Lord. Just like his preparation and training for the mission, Charlie Duke was a voracious student of the word of God. "I began to devour Scripture, several hours a day," he said. "The more I read, the more conviction the Lord brought upon me. Hebrews says, 'The Word is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.' God began to reveal to me the sin in my life."
In our walk with the Lord, let us follow the example of Charlie Duke. May we be transformed by God's word in such a way that we desire to walk closely with Him on a continual basis, just as the old hymn goes:
Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.
“Walking on the moon was three days,” he said. “But walking with Jesus is forever.”
- Charlie Duke, Astronaut
Blessings to you!