My father was a pilot.
He many times had a ruddy red face, even in the middle of winter when sunshine was scarce. It is important to know that this was not his regular complexion. He only had it when he was flying. At those times, he often looked sunburned.
I asked him about this once and he looked at me and said, "Well, if you think about it, I fly above the clouds where it is always sunny. I can fly around the thunderheads and above the rest of it so I am always in the sunshine."
My father used quite a few aviation examples, like, at the end of his life, when he found out his lung cancer was inoperable. He looked at my brother Charles and me and said, "When a pilot knows he is going to crash, the best thing he can do is make sure it is a controlled crash. And that is what I am going to have to do."
And he died in a very dignified, 'controlled crash', surrounded by prayer and his family.
But back to his flying above the clouds example.
Lately, we as a nation have had quite a few financial storms ... economic tornadoes and massive financial hurricane have affected our economy enormously. It is very easy for the Christian to become fearful and consumed with anxiety. It is very easy for the Christian to throw faith overboard and become paralyzed with worry and dread about the future.
Time to fly around these thunderheads. Time to fly above these troublesome clouds.
Hebrews 12:2 comes in handy here: 'Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.'
In the Greek, perhaps a better rendering is: 'Let us look away from all that distracts us and focus on Jesus ...'
Learning to look past the fear-provoking events of this life and keep our faith focused on Christ while the waves of this world crash around us, is a key to 'flying above the clouds'. Learning to make Christ our center of attention while the tornadoes of life reek havoc all around us, is a surefire way to find that rock in the midst of life's quicksand.
Are you fearful, worried and anxious right now? It doesn't matter if the event that is weighing you down is a financial meltdown, a failing marriage or simply trying to find your path in life. All of these are thunderheads, where I come from.
Center yourself anew on Christ and give him that problem that is pushing your face underwater. Consciously ask him to take care of you. And believe that he will.
Like my father, your faith will soon have a ruddy complexion as it propels you above the clouds, into the sunshine that never grows dark.
2 comments:
I really like the idea of faith having a ruddy complexion as it flies above the clouds. This is your best entry yet.
Terry, I didn't know your father was a pilot and thanks for sharing about his "controlled crash"...my dad was a U.S. Air Force pilot and when he passed away some 7 years ago, he also had a controlled crash...after reading your article it helped me better understand his circumstances when he passed away...my dad also had a ruddy complexion and I inherited mine from him...actually it was a condition called, "rosacea" and I lost mine after my doctor put me through an anti-biotic therapy...but, without a doubt, the Lord wants us to fly above the clouds and even fly with the jet streams to get to where He wants us to go.
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