Try Auto Pilot Instead!
We all go through times when it’s difficult to see the way ahead. In this fantastic article, Ralph Burden recommends that instead of trying to navigate your own way through the ‘clouds’ of confusion, let God be your auto-pilot instead.
Ralph Burden is the senior leader at Oasis Church in Chippenham. The church website is www.oasischippenham.com. Soon to launch - www.ralphburden.com.
.................................................................................................................................................................
Try Auto Pilot Instead
Richard enjoyed flying his private plane at weekends. Although an expensive hobby, it gave him a welcome release from the stresses of his demanding job. With several years experience, he knew that he was competent and had faced most of the usual challenges in the air. When he came upon a cloudbank, it would usually be easy enough to climb above the clouds, or to dip beneath them for a while. But when the unexpected happened, Richard was surprised and disappointed at his own response.
Panic
Richard was a long-standing Christian and was not easily unnerved. As he approached a bank of low-lying cloud, he knew that it would be dangerous to try dipping below it, so he began to climb towards the sky above. As the cloud drew nearer, Richard was reaching the height limits of his small, non-pressurised plane, but he was still heading for cloud rather than clear sky! If he went much higher, he would struggle to breathe, become nauseated, and would soon lose consciousness in the thin air.
The plane entered the cloudbank, and Richard began to panic. Cloud is confusing. It becomes disorientating and the pilot doesn’t know whether he is heading up or down. Many pilots of small planes had lost their lives after becoming disorientated flying through clouds. With his heart pounding and a cold sweat on his brow, Richard looked at the altitude indicator. He began to pray. It wasn’t really a prayer of faith, it was a prayer of desperation. “God, help me! What should I do now?” Richard knew the problem of entering cloud. Once the ‘attitude’ of the plane compared to the horizon was changed, the aircraft would either begin to climb or to dive. Either way, he could lose his life.
A Simple Answer
Suddenly, Richard remembered the obvious. God had answered his prayer in a very practical way. For a few tense moments, he had forgotten that the small plane was equipped with an auto-pilot! He didn’t like using it because he liked to do everything himself, but in a situation like this, the auto-pilot was a life-saver. Richard pressed the button and allowed the automatic guidance system to take over. The plane would now keep a set distance above the ground, would maintain the desired speed, and the pilot could sit back and relax. Thirty minutes later, the tiny aircraft was though the dense cloud and out of danger.
Refer to Maker for Instructions
How many of us can identify with this situation? Even after many years as Christians, trusting in God throughout every circumstance, we can be faced with the unexpected. Sometimes problems and situations hit us that cause confusion and disorientation. Our experience does not always equip us for the unexpected, and we can feel totally out of our depth, unable to cope. When this situation occurs, we need to go back to the maker for instructions:
Jesus said: “do not worry about your life … look at the birds of the air … your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they are?”
Jesus said don’t worry, yet we often do worry because we can’t see what he can see! When we hit the cloudbank, we can only see a thick white fog - but God is above it all. He can see ahead and knows that the situation we face is both a temporary and a temporal problem. If we try to rely upon our own abilities during these situations, the results can be disastrous. It is time to do something positive. It is time to switch on the heavenly guidance system, sit back and let God guide us through.
Fear of the Unknown
Being unable to see is often a cause of fear. Children are often afraid of the dark. When my youngest daughter was seven, she was afraid of the dark, but that fear vanished if either Mum or Dad were with her. It no longer mattered whether or not she could see, she trusted that the one holding her hand was trustworthy.
Isaiah wrote: “Do not fear, because I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”
To be redeemed is to be purchased. God has purchased us and we are his prized possession. If you were prepared to die for something, it would have to be extremely valuable to you! He is not going to let us down. When I can’t see the way ahead, I need to take the Father’s hand and let him walk beside me.
Running in the Sand
Finally, we need to remember that God allows the unexpected to happen to us in order to teach us to trust him all the more. Children need to experience all kinds of things and face various fears in order to grow up. We are God’s children and he wants us to grow up. Life isn’t always fair, and the things that happen to us are not always pleasant – but it is a fact of life that we usually put our trust in God more during the bad times than when things go well! We tend to look back and see how much we have grown following tough experiences rather than when the going is easy. Former world record holder and Olympic gold medallist Steve Ovett made winning the 1500 metres look so easy on the firm rubber track, but he trained running in sand dunes! Have you ever tried running in sand dunes? It is very difficult at the time, you feel like you are getting nowhere, but afterwards running on a hard surface seems very easy indeed.
If you are going through a cloud experience, switch on the auto-pilot. When we can’t see the way ahead, God can. Let him take control. He has already planned the route you will take and he is not about to let any one of us plummet to the ground. After the cloud has gone, there will be an opportunity to rejoice and thank God for guidance, protection and progress.
© Ralph Burden, 2008.
..................................................................................................................................................................