TRUSTING IN GOD

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight.
In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.”  (Proverbs 3:5,6 NRSV)

The Rev. Eric Folkerth tells the story about a Navy pilot in the Gulf War with Iraq... He was flying a mission on the very first night of the war, and his mission was to fly deep into Iraqi territory. Just as he crossed into Iraq, something all pilots fear happened: his instruments showed a missile was heading toward him. So, he maneuvered to get out of the way. Unfortunately, his maneuver sent him into a tailspin, and totally disoriented his senses. He had the sense that he was falling hard toward the left, and that to correct this, he needed to make a hard right turn. But, just before doing this maneuver, he looked down at his instruments. And his instruments showed he should do the exact opposite. His own inner ear and sense of balance told him one thing. His instruments told him another. He had to make a decision, and he only had split seconds.

He decided to trust the instruments. He remembered he'd been told that that's what he should do in flight school, and that his own sense of up and down could get disoriented. So, he banked back to the left, instead of to the right. And, sure enough, it brought him out of the tailspin.

In life, when things are going badly and we are in a tailspin, we have a tendency to trust in our own insights, or perceptions, of the situation. We try to get out of it our own way. But that will often bring on the necessity of a search and rescue mission. Instead, we need to trust the "instruments" of God's Word. He has placed before us the way we should go. We simply need to trust Him, acknowledge His perfect way, and He will guide us back to the right pathway. Enjoy the flight, but trust in the Lord's instruments.

-- Rev. David T. Wilkinson


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