"Losing Control"

I'm reminded of something my Pastor said last year. My pastor really likes planes and flying (his office has models of planes) and so he actually worked and studied to get a flying liscence. He talked once in a sermon, about being in a situation where as a pilot, you want to have control over your plane... but sometimes things happen and you don't know what to do. Here's the story he gave:

Upon learning to fly a plane, a young student was in the air and all of a sudden, the plane stalled. It started going down and the young man, panicking, gripped the handles and tried to pull it up and fix the plane, while calling into the tower reporting that his plane was stalling. The men in the tower quickly yelled, "LET GO OF THE HANDLE BARS." The young man didn't want to listen and couldn't understand the concept of how doing so would help... it would only cause the plane to get further out of control... wouldn't it? He continued to panic and the tower continued to panic with him by yelling, "LET GO OF THE CONTROLS!" Sad to say, the young man wouldn't let go of the controls... and the plane ultimately crashed, where the young man lost more than control... he lost his life.

I was curious to know where my pastor was going with this story; though after hearing what he said afterwards, it made so much sense and almost seemed obvious to see the importance of this story. Pastor Keeter told us; in flight school, they tell you, "If a plane stalls, let go of the controls, because the plane is designed to regulate itself and fix the problem by itself; however, the plane cannot regain control and fix the problem... if you try to fix the controls yourself."

In life, we face decisions... and circumstances that we sometimes don't like, don't understand, or even hate. You might be well off one day, and all of a sudden circumstances take hold and ruin your financial status--leaving you in ruins. Someone may do everything they can to help someone, sacrificing time, energy, sometimes sleep or other necessities--just to end up failing the person. Other times, life just throws everything that can possibly go wrong your way: money problems, relationship problems, family problems, academic struggles, problems at work, misunderstandings with friends, lack of support when you need it, no encouragement, or even saddening circumstances such as a child going through their parents divorce, starvation, or even the loss of a close friend or family member. A young lady may have a desire to get a degree, working hard, and the mistake of sex before marraige may produce a pregnancy that causes her to dropout of school. A woman may struggle with relationships; dreaming of the one God has for her, and a man that may have fit those expectations may end up with someone else, or even worse, he may have turned into a fraud that is abusive or hurtful towards the young lady--leaving her in shambles and afraid to speak up. A man might work to support his family, in which he barely gets by financially, or feels upset that he cannot afford luxeries or the best for his loved ones; and then gets laid off of work due to cuts or the business moving overseas. There are so many things that happen throughout life, that we do not understand, and obviously... wish we did understand them. There have been times that each and every person has prayed to God asking, "Why, Lord? I don't get it?" or... "What did I do wrong?"

We are all pilots... flying the plane of life. We get in the cockpit and we have to take off; but as they say, "What goes up, must come down." Its up to us, though, how we're going to come down. Are you going to land a safe landing in the straight away? Or will you crash? We might be the ones piloting the plane, but there's a greater voice in the command tower that is guiding our decisions, telling us not what might be the right thing to do, or what should work or things of that nature... neither does that voice make suggestions, rather it tells us what to do... knowing, however, that we have to choose to listen or ingore that voice. God's in the control tower, and sometimes we do something wrong, and don't understand the circumstances in our life; and God is simply telling us, "Let go of the controls, I'll take care of you."

The problem is that sometimes we focus on the circumstance at hand. We are told by everyone else what we should do, or what we shouldn't do. People see you with money and think, "You should go and buy yourself something," when maybe God is telling you, I want you to bless this person over here and give them the money. "What?" we think. We may not even know the person, but God does, and He may know the person is struggling and is in need, or maybe that money is just a means to reach out to them and witness. Sometimes a man or woman desires intimacy, and instead of waiting for the right person, they resort to the clubs and bars, telling themselves, "I've got one chance to live this life and I might as well have fun." And yet we hear and read in the news all the time of rape victims or people who have gone missing. Or someone might just go on a exodus to find the next single person, and if he or she looks good and at least meets some of the criteria that he or she has in finding someone, then they'll settle... often compromising many of the important things they want in a man or woman. This usually leads to heavy disagreements and fights... and broken relationships/friendships. Many times we want to listen to everyone else and not even pray about decisions face in our life. What good does it for a pilot to call one of his passengers and tell them, "We're going to crash, any ideas?" You might have someone that just panics and starts yelling... telling you everything except... good ideas... (or any ideas for that matter, they just might be yelling). Sometimes you'll get a passenger that thinks like you do and says, "Fix it! Grab the wheel and pull up!" It might seem like the right advice... but it isn't. But then sometimes, you'll find that man or woman that says, "Call in the control tower, I'm sure they may be able to help." There might be that one friend that says, "I can think of a million things to say... but why don't you pray and ask God? After all... He's in control."

We've got to let go of the controls sometimes, and simply let God do His job. When we start stalling, it doesn't mean that we did something wrong... it may simply be an obstacle or trial (such as the turbulance of life). Sometimes we go through clouds, and we can't see our way, but we have to trust God that He guides our path. We can't see below us or above us, but we have to trust that God is holding us every step of the way. And another thing about planes... there's no looking back... you've got to shoot forward on the path that God gives you. And if you get of course, sometimes it takes a lot of work and adjustments to get back on track. Sometimes the flight is tiring, and we feel like we're "running out of gas," and we can't go on any further, and we land short of our destination, and God has to refill us and give us encouragement to continue on. But ultimately, we have to remember that He is in control; and knows whats best.

So don't fear when facing financial problems. Don't fret when relationships don't go your way. Don't panic when you go through issues at work or at school. And don't be dismayed when stuggles appear in the family or between friends. Trust God. Let go of the controls, and He'll take care of you.