On April 11, 1970, Apollo 13 blasted off on a mission to the moon. As the movie pointed out, the mission was largely overlooked since the moon had already been visited, and with the exception of Apollo 1, space travel had been made to look about as safe as a morning commute.
Noteably, one crew member was left behind. Ken Mattingly had been exposed to German measles from one of his kids and just three days before launch, he was replaced by his backup. His dream of visiting the moon shattered, he was essentially sent back to the bench to watch others achieve his dream. He never got the measles.
The mission didn’t go according to plan. Two days into the mission, an oxygen tank exploded, causing all sorts of problems. The three man team was forced to live in the Lunar Module, which hadn’t been designed for that many people for that many days. In particular, the carbon-dioxide scrubbers were inadequate for the task of cleaning out that much carbon dioxide so that the three men could breathe. Making the task trickier was the fact that the astronauts on board Apollo 13 didn’t exactly have a full workshop to rebuild the scrubbers. They’d have to find a way with what they had on hand.
In jumped Mattingly. Having already spend thousands of hours in the training version of the module, he moved back in to help – from the inside – figure out a way to help his friends. He was instrumental in reworking the scrubbers, which begged the question: what if he hadn’t been left behind?
Imagine what it looked like for the Apostles. They’d spent three years following a guy they believed to be the Messiah – the hope of Israel, the Deliverer. But he’d been arrested, beaten, crucified and buried. Things had not gone according to plan, and the ragtag band of Christ’s followers looked for all the world like the greatest fools of all time. It seems quite clear that the guy they’d been following had failed.
Of course, in hindsight, we know that the plan did not fail. Christ’s trust that His Father would raise Him from the dead was proved true. And the Apostles’ faith in Christ’s message was vindicated.
At Pentecost, Peter pulled no punches in pointing this out:
Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified. (Acts 2:36)
Have you ever had a time like that – when it looked for all the world like the plan had become an utter disaster? Maybe you’d done what you believed to be right – only to see someone trash your reputation and appear to all the world like they’d beat you. Or maybe you’ve faithfully followed Christ as best you know how, believing that He’d take care of you… only to see your world fall apart.
Has the plan failed? Has God left you to wait? You’re in good company. David was left there for fairly large chunks of his life. He spent decades hiding in caves with outlaws while Saul lived comfortably in his palace. He had to hide again, when his own son ran him out of Jerusalem. In both instances, it looked to all the world like he’d failed, like someone else had won. And then, of course, there’s Jesus.
“So this great biblical story of God’s purposes to set the whole world right going ahead actually includes the strange, dark theme which says the Servant who is to carry out God’s mission will look as though he’s failed. All he can do is trust God, to commit his cause to God, to wait in utter faith.”
-NT Wright, Christians at the Cross
If this is where you are, then wait in faith as God’s servant. Wait in full confidence. Be encouraged by the story of Pentecost, of the victory of the book of Acts. The dark days following Palm Sunday were overcome by a light that is now filling the whole world. God’s plan has not failed, and He has vindicated His Servant. He will also take care of you. The plan may not always look like a success. Mattingly never made it to the moon, and the Apostles never ruled on earth. But follow David, listen to his psalms, and learn “to wait in utter faith.” The God who saved 3,000 men in a single day knows your circumstances, and He hasn’t forgotten you.
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