Unforgiving, that is what scares us about airplanes. Practically every accident involving an airplane is completely fatal. There is no margin for error. Falling out the sky is such a total death trip. Few of us know anyone who has survived a plane crash. All of us know people who have survived auto accidents.
So while the additional leg room on the flight to Zurich was welcome, it made me stop and think about the added responsibility that also comes with this seat in the exit row. The evil side of me, says "Oh yes, I am closer to escaping this airplane than the guy behind me, because I am closest to the emergency exit." I can easily live my life like that too (yes I am a missionary, and yes I know that this is ungodly, and yes I am working on this problem - that's why I am writing this blog). I can easily think that I am saved, and that that is mostly what matters. Once someone asked Spurgeon if the heathen will be saved without preaching the gospel to them, he replied, ‘the question is, ‘Are we saved if we do not preach the Gospel to them’?. . . . and I think that is a powerful answer.
That was the evil side of me. There is the humane side and the spirit of God side of me that says, "No I will stand here and help other people out of the plane." While this view is closer to a Christ-like point of view, it too is fraught with pitfalls. Like "how noble it is to save people" or "how heroic it is to sacrifice oneself for others." Missionaries get that crap all the time. Heck, who are we kidding? It is what keeps half the missionary force on the field. But this too is a wrong perspective because I certainly am no more noble nor heroic than anyone else.
Final destinations, just like airplane crashes, are completely the end. That video on the airplane that shows these cartoon characters helping others down the "slides that deploy in case of a water landing" are cartoons for a reason - because there is no such thing as a water landing. Oh it may be a possibility in the world of physics and science, but when have you ever heard of one actually happening?
I have come to the conclusion after flying around the world for the last 32 years (I took my first flight when I was 12), that all this safety business/instruction on an airplane is mainly to give the illusion of safety, the feeling that everything is under control and survivable no matter what. Even though I continue to enjoy the view of the Swiss Alps out my window in this sardine can filled with people zipping through the atmosphere, if the engines go out, there is no stopping the work of gravity - I have no illusions about this.
And I have come to the conclusion after 20 plus years of vocational ministry that I also can't save anybody in a spiritual sense. Only God can do that, only Him. At the same time, I can't let the cynicism of 32 years of flying grab me in a spiritual sense, and cause me to lose perspective that God is both challenging me and inviting me (us?) to join in His saving work around the world.
So I am planting myself in the exit row of life, and I am determined to help all I can.
So while the additional leg room on the flight to Zurich was welcome, it made me stop and think about the added responsibility that also comes with this seat in the exit row. The evil side of me, says "Oh yes, I am closer to escaping this airplane than the guy behind me, because I am closest to the emergency exit." I can easily live my life like that too (yes I am a missionary, and yes I know that this is ungodly, and yes I am working on this problem - that's why I am writing this blog). I can easily think that I am saved, and that that is mostly what matters. Once someone asked Spurgeon if the heathen will be saved without preaching the gospel to them, he replied, ‘the question is, ‘Are we saved if we do not preach the Gospel to them’?. . . . and I think that is a powerful answer.
That was the evil side of me. There is the humane side and the spirit of God side of me that says, "No I will stand here and help other people out of the plane." While this view is closer to a Christ-like point of view, it too is fraught with pitfalls. Like "how noble it is to save people" or "how heroic it is to sacrifice oneself for others." Missionaries get that crap all the time. Heck, who are we kidding? It is what keeps half the missionary force on the field. But this too is a wrong perspective because I certainly am no more noble nor heroic than anyone else.
Final destinations, just like airplane crashes, are completely the end. That video on the airplane that shows these cartoon characters helping others down the "slides that deploy in case of a water landing" are cartoons for a reason - because there is no such thing as a water landing. Oh it may be a possibility in the world of physics and science, but when have you ever heard of one actually happening?
I have come to the conclusion after flying around the world for the last 32 years (I took my first flight when I was 12), that all this safety business/instruction on an airplane is mainly to give the illusion of safety, the feeling that everything is under control and survivable no matter what. Even though I continue to enjoy the view of the Swiss Alps out my window in this sardine can filled with people zipping through the atmosphere, if the engines go out, there is no stopping the work of gravity - I have no illusions about this.
And I have come to the conclusion after 20 plus years of vocational ministry that I also can't save anybody in a spiritual sense. Only God can do that, only Him. At the same time, I can't let the cynicism of 32 years of flying grab me in a spiritual sense, and cause me to lose perspective that God is both challenging me and inviting me (us?) to join in His saving work around the world.
So I am planting myself in the exit row of life, and I am determined to help all I can.
1 comment:
That was good!
Me too!
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