I just returned from Honduras myself which included four planes, four flights, four take offs and four landings to get me there and back...safely...praise God!
As we were taking off each and every time there was an announcement that was made. An announcement that has been made since the beginning of air travel, I would guess, on each and every plane that makes its way down the runway and entering the friendly skies. An announcement that most tune out, so much so that if you've heard or watched the video lately they have cleaverly made it entertaining in hopes to hold your attention long enough to get their important message across...if the message is so important, who would tune it out you may ask...Well I suppose it's those who don't want to be reminded as they enter the friendly skies that sometimes the skies are not so friendly. They begin to fix their stuff in their seat, getting situated for the next few hours and just don't want to listen to these words, "Please take a moment to locate the nearest exit door, your seat can be used as a floatation device, if the cabin looses air pressure a little yellow oxygen mask will drop down from that round thing above you, simply take the mask, while remaining perfectly calm and secure the mask around your nose and mouth, begin to breathe normally, if someone near you, needs assistance, be sure to secure your oxygen mask first before assisting them, there will be small lights that will guide you to the exit doors and there will be a slide that inflates for your ease of exit, it turns into a raft if necessary, and as always thank you for flying the friendly skies with us today." okay, so that's my version of the whole in the event of an emergency spill...and yes, I agree with most, we really don't want to be reminded that emergencies happen, the plane is headed down the runway and the cabin door has been securely fastened!
I pray myself nor anyone else has to ever go through such an emergency...
As I listened to the announcement though, I heard something, something that made me stop and say, wow, that's something to think about...that's a pretty important point they just made. That's what I want us to think about today.
So, let's begin to look at this important announcement from a spiritual stand point...If you've lived long at all, you have realized by now the skies aren't always so friendly. There's turbulance along the way. There are sudden drops when we fly through air pockets. There are storms to pass through. There are moments of sudden loss of cabin air pressure. In those moments, we can loose our breath for a bit, we can feel like someone just punched us in the gut and begin to gasp for our much needed oxygen. Let's just be honest and say, there are moments when we desperately need a tiny yellow mask to fall from the ceiling of our heart that we can strap on and begin to breathe normal again...The thing is, the thing we miss sometimes, the thing I missed so many times, is this most important part: "If someone next to you needs assistance, be sure to fasten your mask on securely before assisting them." Man! How many times have I reached to help someone else put their oxygen mask on when I'm gasping for breath and about to near pass out myself!!!
I could tell you what to do with the best of them. I could give advice. I could speak my opinion with confidence. I could tell you what God's Word said in regard to certain situations. But, in the end in the depths of my own heart, my friendly skies were not so friendly, I was experiencing turbulance like never before, my plane was in an air pocket falling ever so slowly to the next wind, my cabin had lost all air pressure and I was desperately gasping for air! I knew there was an oxygen mask, I could even see it hanging midair just waiting for me to strap it on tightly, but I was so stubborn and independent I choose to try to breathe on my own.
Bad choice.
I sit here today so grateful for the faithfulness of God! I'm thankful He allowed my plane to take a slow dive, giving me time to grab my mask before totally crashing. I'm thankful it was a storm, a really big and bad storm, and not engine failure. I'm thankful that His Word and Holy Spirit became the very breath that I began to breathe. He allowed me to walk through a time of "Lenee's way", breathing through "Lenee's mask", so I could realize I desperately needed "His way", His oxygen mask provided through Jesus Christ. I realized I was the ONLY person in the plane I had control over, and I didn't even have that much control over that person! I was the only person I could change, or allow God and His oxygen to change and bring back to life again.
Our bodies cannnot survive without precious oxygen. Any place that goes without it for a period of time dies. The cells cannot survive. That's how our Creator made us. I think it's so amazing that the very thing, the one thing, that our bodies cannot do without, we have been given in abundance and created to do naturally. I don't have to tell myself to breathe. God knows I might get distracted and forget...how bad that would be!! He knew if He didn't make it part of what our bodies do automatically we couldn't and wouldn't do it on our own.
I believe in the same way, He has placed in each of us an automatic desire to know Him, as Creator, look around for a moment, isn't He just awesome! Spring is only a few days away! My favorite season! I believe He has placed in us an automatic search to know Him as our Savior from this world, from the skies that aren't always so friendly. There's a place in each of our souls that He has created for Himself, for His love and grace to be real in us and our automatic response is to desire to fill that place. Sometimes we choose to allow Him to be in that place, sometimes we don't. Either way, the place has to be filled. I'm thankful that He was patient with me, He was loving and showed me that it was His place...His place alone.
Today, I don't know what your plane feels like, nor what your skies are like, whether they are calm and pleasant or whether you are passing through a storm and experiencing the turbulance of your life. What I do know is that there is HOPE! There is an oxygen mask available should your cabin loose air pressure knocking the very breath out of you. I know there is life giving oxygen available and it is in His Word and by His Spirit alone that we can continue to breathe through the turbulance and storms. Breathe life, new life, breathe deep, breathe normally. Breathe in peace though the plane is jumping all over the place.
Reach up, take hold of the little yellow oxygen mask that has been given for this very purpose, take hold of Jesus and all His promises in His Word, secure those promises around your heart and mind, breathe normally with His peace that goes beyond understanding and look around...there may be others who need help securing theirs.
"Because He lives I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives all fear is gone,
Because I know He holds my future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives"
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