The brilliant Charles Krauthammer always writes something compelling. For political analysis, no one is better. I also enjoy his other topics, such as the one a few days ago in which he speculated about the possibility of life on other planets. He asked straight-away: are we alone in the universe?

There is a deep human need not to be alone, although a few stray non-conformists buck the system; think J.D. Salinger.

As Krauthammer wrote:

“For all the excitement, however, the search betrays a profound melancholy—a lonely species in a merciless universe anxiously awaits an answering voice amid utter silence.”

He goes on to say that silence is maddening.

I happen not to believe in alien intelligence, simply because there is no evidence. It’s the same reason I don’t believe Bigfoot exists.

We know that not only our planet but the universe can be a cruel, forbidding place. But we all have to place our faith in “something,” else we would spin off into the great void in utter despair.

Krauthammer also recognizes the terrible fate that can await a species that has discovered nuclear power. He ended his column by pointing to the nobility and hopefulness of political systems that keep society ordered. He wrote:

“Fairly or not, politics is the driver of history. It will determine whether we live long enough to be heard one day. Out there. By them, the few—the only—who got it right.”

I part company with the great Krauthammer on this point. I do not place my faith in politics. Human politics..that isn’t the driver of history.

The real Driver of History has revealed Himself in the pages of the Bible. He alone can turn around our loneliness, both individually and corporately.

He has promised to return to this sick and dying world. If you want to feel hopeful about our place in history, the universe, and beyond, read John 16:33 in the Bible.

Those words are the true key to ridding yourself of the despair that comes from feeling vulnerable in a huge, cosmic habitat.