Evangelism

On Easter Monday, Victor Glover, pilot of the spacecraft Integrity of NASA’s Artemis II mission, proclaimed the Greatest Commandment from space.

The crew of Integrity had just made history at 1:56 p.m. EDT on April 6, surpassing the farthest distance any humans have ever travelled from Earth. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hanson, bested Apollo 13’s previous record of traveling 248,655 miles from Earth.

The Integrity crew broke that record, set in 1970, by over 4,000 miles, travelling 252,756 miles away from our pale, blue dot.

To commemorate the occasion, the crew proposed names for two craters on the moon, one after their spacecraft, Integrity, and one after commander Wiseman’s late wife, Carroll, who passed away in 2020 after a five-year battle with cancer.

Hanson, serving as mission specialist, proposed the names to Houston. “It’s a bright spot on the moon,” Hanson said as his voice broke, “and we would like to call it Carroll.”

In the emotional moment, Wiseman, the mission’s commander, broke down into tears, and the Integrity crew embraced – setting another record for sharing the farthest group hug away from Earth. NASA shared the moment on X.

To commemorate the Artemis II mission, the astronauts announced their suggestion to rename certain features on the Moon to honor the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, as well as commander Reid Wiseman's late wife, Carroll. pic.twitter.com/ejfhnItDo8

— NASA (@NASA) April 6, 2026

Hours later, just before the crew lost contact with Earth for 40 minutes as Integrity sped behind the moon, pilot Glover gave a special space sermon: “As we continue to unlock the mysteries of the cosmos, I would like to remind you of one of the most important mysteries there on earth. And that’s love.”

He added,

Glover referenced the Greatest Commandment given by Jesus Christ: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39, ESV).

Just two days earlier, Glover shared his perspective on Easter from halfway between the Earth and the moon as the astronauts looked back at “the beauty of creation.”

“When I read the Bible and I look at all of the amazing things that were done for us who were created, it’s, you have this amazing place, this spaceship … you’re on a spaceship called Earth that was created to give us a place to live in the universe, in the cosmos,” Glover shared.

“I’m trying to tell you, just trust me, you are special. In all of this emptiness, this is a whole bunch of nothing – this thing we call the universe – you have this oasis, this beautiful place that we get to exist together.”

As the Artemis II astronauts circled the moon, they captured a breathtaking photo, “Earthset,” depicting the Earth setting behind the moon.

As Integrity came around the moon, the crew witnessed an Earthrise, the Earth rising from behind the moon, followed by an hour-long solar eclipse as the spacecraft, the moon and the sun aligned.

Glover’s beautiful orbital homily is reminiscent of Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders’ reading of Genesis as the Apollo 8 crew orbited the moon on Christmas Eve of 1968. The Apollo 8 crew members were the first humans to see the far side of the moon and photograph an Earthrise.

The Artemis II mission has inspired millions and left many in awe at the amazing capability of human beings, and the stunning grandeur of God’s good creation.

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.” (Psalm 8: 3-5, ESV)

Through Artemis II’s pictures and pilot Glover’s commentary, the 8 billion of us left on Earth have seen and heard God revealed through both the book of nature and the book of Scripture.

The Integrity is on its way back to Earth and scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10. We pray for and wish the crew a safe return!

To speak with a family help specialist or request resources, please call us at 1-800-A-FAMILY (232-6459).

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NASA’s Webb Telescope Confirms Christian Belief: The Universe Had a Beginning

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Photo from Getty Images.

On April 1, mankind is scheduled to head to the moon for the first time this century. NASA’s Artemis II mission is the first crewed test flight in the Artemis campaign and the first flight with crew aboard the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.

The mission will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen on a 10-day mission around the moon to confirm the Orion spacecraft’s ability to operate in a deep space environment ahead of next year’s Artemis III mission.

Wiseman is commanding the flight, with Navy Capt. Glover as pilot and Koch and Hanson as mission specialists.

The Artemis IV mission will send astronauts to the surface of the moon, with future missions sending crews to Mars.

The Artemis II mission is one of firsts. Koch will be the first woman to pass over the moon; Glover will be the first African American and Hansen will be the first Canadian.

Glover was born in Pomona, California. He graduated from Ontario High School in 1994 before earning a bachelor’s degree in general engineering and three master’s degrees.

Glover joined the U.S. Navy and served as a test pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet, Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler. He’s accumulated 3,500 flight hours in over 40 aircraft, landed on aircraft carriers over 400 times and served 24 combat missions.

In 2013, Glover was selected as one of eight members of the 21st NASA astronaut class. In 2018, he was assigned to his first spaceflight mission, as Crew-1 pilot, and as a flight engineer aboard the International Space Station (ISS), spending 168 days in space.

He and his wife, Dionna, have four children.

In 2023, Glover was assigned as Artemis II pilot. NASA published a video sharing more about Glover’s story, which you can watch below:

The astronaut hasn’t been shy about sharing his Christian faith in recent years.

After spending six months aboard the ISS, he returned to Earth and praised NASA for allowing him to take communion each week.

“I was able to worship in space,” he said, adding, “[NASA] supported me and my family’s desire to continue to worship and to continue our faith walk even while I was off the planet. That was really important to me.”

In a 2023 interview with The Christian Chronicle, Glover shared about how his faith and science and military career are “interwoven.”

“My career is fed by my faith, and you know, anytime I do something that’s pretty risky, I pray — before I fly, every time I fly,” he said. “Definitely when you go sit on top of a rocket ship.”

“In the military, there’s a saying that there are no atheists in foxholes. There aren’t any on top of rockets, either.”

Glover spoke about how working at NASA often evokes conversations about creation.

“We talk about our solar system, and I will often refer to the beauty of creation. People hear that, and it’s like a trigger word for certain folks. But that’s in church and at NASA.”

Glover added that he doesn’t believe there’s a conflict between faith and science: “They don’t actually work against each other like some people like to claim that they do.”

Indeed, modern science increasingly supports Christian theism. Scientists have discovered that our universe is fine-tuned to support life – and many creatures within it appear intelligently designed. There is also increasing evidence that our universe began at a finite point in the past – raising the question of what – or Who – caused the universe to come into being.

“I believe in both [faith and science],” Glover shared, “and I don’t find them to be in conflict.”

As the beautiful Psalm 19 poetically declares,

“The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

Day to day pours out speech,

and night to night reveals knowledge.

There is no speech, nor are there words,

whose voice is not heard.

Their voice goes out through all the earth,

and their words to the end of the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4, ESV)

Much has changed since Apollo 17, the last crewed mission to the moon, launched on December 7, 1972. Richard Nixon was president. The Dow Jones sat at 1,020 points. And Sammy Davis Jr. had just released “The Candy Man.”

Fifty years later, humankind is headed to the moon once again. Artemis II’s two-hour launch window starts at 6:24 p.m. EDT, with an 80% chance of favorable weather conditions.

Please join us in prayer for all four astronauts’ safety as they begin their 10-day mission around the moon. Godspeed!

To speak with a family help specialist or request resources, please call us at 1-800-A-FAMILY (232-6459).

Related articles and resources:

NASA Astronaut Victor Glover: “We Need Jesus”

New Film Explores ‘Intentional Design’ of The Universe

NASA’s Webb Telescope Confirms Christian Belief: The Universe Had a Beginning

Leading Scientist: The Universe Points to the Existence of God

Photo from Getty Images.

While the majority of United States presidents have openly identified as Christians, President Donald Trump and his administration may uniquely hold the distinction of so frequently and openly invoking the name of Jesus.

Over the years, presidents have traditionally issued Easter proclamations, but at the beginning of Monday’s press briefing, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt acknowledged the beginning of these final days of Lent.

“This Holy Week, President Trump and the First Lady are joining in prayer with Christians celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” she stated. Leavitt went on to say the president would be hosting an Easter lunch on Wednesday with faith leaders to formally commemorate these symbolically significant days leading up to Resurrection Sunday.

This past year, the Trump administration has established a presidential commission on religious liberty and a White House Faith Office that reflects the strong concentration of Christian belief and tradition in the United States.

On Palm Sunday, President Trump shared a letter he received last fall from Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Mr. Graham, who has enjoyed a longstanding friendship with the 45^th and 47^th chief executive, had reached out to Mr. Trump after the president mentioned to the press he didn’t know if he was going to make it to Heaven.

While speaking with reporters this past October aboard Air Force One, President Trump said:

“I don’t think there’s anything gonna get me in heaven, okay? I really don’t. I think, I think I’m not maybe heavenbound. I may be in heaven right now as we fly in Air Force One—I’m not sure I’m gonna be able to make heaven, but I’ve made life a lot better for a lot of people.”

Hearing that exchange, Franklin Graham decided to privately reach out to President Trump. Here is the heart of what the son of the late Billy Graham wrote:

Maybe you responded in jest, but it is an important issue to know for certain that your soul is secure and will spend eternity in the presence of God. The only One who can save us from Hell is Jesus Christ. You can’t save yourself; I can’t save myself. Good works, prominence, success — none of these get us to Heaven. The only way to Heaven is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

God requires us to turn from our sins and, by faith, believe in our heart that Jesus came to earth, died on the cross for our sins, was buried and God raised Him to life on the third day. If you accept that by faith and invite Him to come into your heart, you ARE heaven bound, I promise you.

The Bible says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).

You continue to be in my prayers.

Christians and non-Christians alike have long debated and discussed the faith of Donald Trump. While he has been friendly and welcoming to evangelicalism, many have questioned where the president is personally on some of the same doctrinal and theological truths shared by Franklin Graham in his pastoral note. It’s impossible to know what’s in a person’s heart, but the overtness with which Graham communicated models the forthrightness and fervor Christians should possess when witnessing.

President Trump’s decision to share this private letter is more than a mere curious peek into a personal exchange between friends. Instead, it’s a sermon of sorts – one more overt presentation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that’s being read by people everywhere. It’s a practical blueprint for the confused, a road map for the curious, and a clear declaration aimed at anyone who does not know the Lord and whose eternity is at stake.

Earlier on Tuesday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth concluded his press briefing at the Pentagon with a prayer for our troops, saying:

“May God watch over all of them, each day and each night. May His almighty and eternal arms of providence stretch over them and protect them and bring them peace. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”

The overtness of Christian faith on display at the highest reaches of the United States government is an answer to the prayers of many believers. It also represents a unique opportunity and sacred responsibility for those entrusted with a platform and those who possess the boldness required to speak truth.