There are many things I could say about flying on an airplane. The most important thing is that I don't like it. I flew for the first time when I was a teenager, and maybe a few more times before I flew eight months pregnant with two preschoolers in tow. After that experience, I didn't fly again for fourteen years.
When we started our family, it was easy not to fly. We certainly didn't have the money for plane tickets, even if we could have mustered up vacation money. The only vacations we took were back home to see family, and with three children, the car was the only way to go. Even after I started working, and we had an extra penny or two, I still drove rather than fly.
Finally, in 2000, flying again was one of my goals for that year. I did get on the plane and fly to Disney World (there was no other place worth flying to). Since then, I have managed to keep flying. Last May, when Maribeth, Molly, and I floated across the Atlantic to Spain (on the Disney Magic, of course), I knew I had two options - stay in Europe for the summer and float back home on the return cruise, or fly home. I flew, helped mightily by an upgrade to "fancy class" by British Airways.
What's the point of this post? The point is why I continue to get on planes. It is not courage on my part. It is not because I like it. It is not because I get places fast, although that is a bonus. I get on planes because I have faith in God that He is with me.
Does He promise me safety? No. Sometimes I even sit in the designated exit rows even though I don't want to help anybody get out. I don't want to look out the window to see if I see flames before I open the door. But I sit there because I know God is sitting beside me.
Does He promise me a smooth flight? No to that one either. I like smooth. Many times I pray that He would smooth a rough patch out. But I know the airways are in His control, and I have to trust Him.
Does He promise that my plane won't crash? No. I am on a man-made machine. I am on this machine with many other humans. There are many life stories and situations on any plane I board. I don't know how my story may interact with theirs. But I know God is with me.
Does he promise anything? Yes, He promises to be with me always, and that is why I can continue to get on airplanes. It's not a test of courage, it's an exercise of faith. Faith in Whom I believe, faith in His promise to always be with me, and faith in His plan for my life.
Exercising faith is hard. It's doing the thing that frightens you and gives you no assurance, but you do anyway because you believe. You look beyond what is in front of you and proceed by what you see ahead.
I still like very little about flying. My favorite part is when the wheels hit the runway and the flight is over. But I fly because it is a way for me to praise God for His eternal love and never-ending promises to me.
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