To orbit the planet Earth, it requires speeds of more than 4.5 miles per second. Travelling at that speed is a growing collection of space junk. Nuts, bolts, and other discarded debris from space flights are presenting a real hazard to future spacecraft. Their sheer speed makes the tiniest object strike with the impact of a bullet. During one of the shuttle missions, a speck of paint created a pit a quarter inch wide in a window of the craft.

One study revealed that there are 110,000 objects larger than 1 centimeter in orbit. Their combined weight is 4 million pounds! To avoid a space junk disaster, the US Space Command monitors orbiting debris for NASA, and the Space Station is constantly shifting positions to avoid passing junk.

Sinful choices create their own kind of junk – unintended consequences. When Achan stole and hid forbidden booty, it cost him his life (Joshua 7). After King David committed adultery and murder, family discord followed (2 Samuel 15-18).

Got any “junk” in your life? Sin’s consequences have a way of accumulating like plaque on an artery. Paul did say, “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7). Time for some Spring cleaning.

Tags: consequences, junk, sin, space