A pilot and friend of mine wrote regarding yesterday’s devotional:

Good “stuff”!       Many years ago, even with my commercial license & instrument rating, I got into a “graveyard spiral.” (The non-recoverable kind below 300 feet)

I survived for only ONE REASON….I let go of the controls!    There’s a SHORT sentence in the owner’s manual, “The 185 Cessna seaplane is inherently stable”!    I proved that right!

We have the same with the “Word of God” Proverbs 3:5 & 6….Yes, let go & let God!

Under those conditions it was the HARDEST thing I ever did, yet the BEST results!  I got to see my wife & beautiful children that night!

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.

Think about it.

Gary

“The Dance” is a song recorded by American country music singer Garth Brooks. One of the most striking stanzas of the song goes like this:

And now, I’m glad I didn’t know
The way it all would end
The way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance

There was a young man who thought he could jump a ravine and he left it to chance. He didn’t succeed and careened to his death on the rocks below.

On July 16, 1999, with about 300 hours of flying experience, Kennedy took off from Essex County airport in New Jersey and flew his single-engine plane into a hazy, moonless night. He had turned down an offer by one of his flight instructors to accompany him, saying he “wanted to do it alone.” To reach his destination of Martha’s Vineyard, he would have to fly 200 miles—the final phase over a dark, hazy ocean—and inexperienced pilots can lose sight of the horizon under such conditions. Unable to see shore lights or other landmarks, Kennedy would have had to depend on his instruments, but he had not qualified for a license to fly with instruments only. He left the flight to chance. Three lives were lost.

Chance is not a good philosophy to guide one’s life. God has offered the believer something more solid:

Isaiah 46:9-10 

Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

You might do OK with your life, but I wouldn’t take a chance on it. The Holy Spirit can be our Guide; don’t refuse having Him on board.

Think about it.

Gary

Someone has said that the average person is being crucified between two thieves–the regrets of yesterday and the worries of tomorrow. Consequently, he can’t enjoy today.

God is certainly not opposed to long-term plans and many times promotes them throughout Scripture.  The thing is there are so many variables that planning is always subject to change.

We are only dealt out one day at a time and should seek to focus on getting the most out of each 24-hour period. The disciples were taught to ask the Heavenly Father to provide what was necessary for today.

Matthew 6:11

Give us today our daily bread.

What do you need for today? Do you think you can make it through the day? God only gives the tools to get today’s job done. Tomorrow hasn’t even been started yet, so let tomorrow take care of itself.

Matthew 6:34

 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Think about it.

Gary

The following was a response from someone about yesterday’s devotional:

“One of my favorite memories is this snowshoe trip when the truck jackknifed and I was 20 weeks pregnant and the whole trip was just one of my favorites!” 

Let me give you the rest of the story. This group was being led by me to take the Rocky challenge.  Yes, one of the climbers was 20 weeks pregnant.  Because she was part Irish, I knew she could handle the physical stress with the determination required.

On the way to the North Maine woods, we followed a tractor-trailer which to me seemed out of place. After a hardy breakfast in Allagash, we headed into the woods. Two miles in, we encountered that very tractor-trailer jackknifed and blocking the whole road. (Now I have many witnesses to this event.) The driver was Russian and only knew about thirty words of English. He claimed to be following his GPS and was to deliver his load of paper in Ohio.  On that road he was traveling, you can only get to nowhere. We were able with time and teamwork to get him turned around and headed in a new direction.

This reminds me of many in a foreign land, unable to grasp the language, uncertain as to what they are doing, and headed nowhere:

Luke 19:10

For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Think about it

Gary

P.S.  She now has the prettiest and smartest little girl ever delivered in the state of Maine.  As to the Russian truck driver, I don’t know if he ever did find Ohio with that load of paper.

There is just something about that mountain. Thoreau had his favorite birch tree, but I have a mountain. My introduction to it came as a young teen with a gang of older boys on a wild trip through the woods to that special place. There was a forestry tower on top, and it was still manned at that time. Sometimes I would take a date for a hike there.  I wouldn’t climb the forestry tower out of fear of heights, but the ranger was willing to supervise the girl’s climb so she could get to appreciate the view.

I was middle-age before I had the intestinal fortitude to climb that tower, for even at the base of the tower, one is looking at a drop-off of hundreds of feet. Every year I take groups of individuals to that spot to enjoy what I’ve loved and experienced over the years.

Maybe you could join us. We snowshoe it every February. In one particular spot, we actually tie a rope so people can pull themselves up a stretch of about 200 feet.  Coming down is a thrill.

Homeland Security built a communication tower on top. To build it, they had to bulldoze a very steep road on the other side of the mountain. Some friends actually took us jeeping to the top, using Homeland Security’s trail.

There’s another place that has my heart and I haven’t even experienced it yet. The name of that place is heaven.  My soul aches because I so desire to take as many people there as I can.

1 Peter 1:4

and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,

Some day we could all gather there and what a view.

Think about it.

Gary

“Cat’s in the Cradle” is a 1974 folk rock song by Harry Chapin from the album, Verities & Balderdash. It’s probably the only song he ever made some big money on. The song was so successful because of the huge numbers of English-speaking fathers out there who are living with a mountain of regret for not spending quality time with their sons. I’d rather be water-boarded than listen to that song.

The Bible offers some very good advice for fathers:

Ephesians 6:4

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

We need to inform young men that life is but a vapor and you only go around once. Take the time, cut some things out of your selfish endeavors, and put those you brought into this world to the forefront of all responsibilities. Neglect in this area will be something you’ll pay for in guilt somewhere down the road.

Give it some thought.

Gary

He was a combat marine just getting back from Vietnam and starting college. The only way he got into the service was because someone else provided him some urine.  Yes, that’s how it was.  He wouldn’t pass because of a kidney problem. He got caught with that stunt once by a medical officer and told the officer that only the military could provide him with the means to get a college education.  The doctor was sympathetic to this young, focused marine and let it pass. He made it through his war experience with only the haunting memories that all combat veterans have to carry.

During his first year of college, he had two veterans for roommates, but one got a teaching position which left him in need of another roommate. He knew of a kid just graduating from high school who needed someone older and wiser to take him under his wing. Yes, I was that person and he was right. He came into my life just at the right time.

To make a long story short, he was the best man at my wedding, and years later, I officiated at the weddings of all three of his sons. One of those boys flew my wife and me to California for his wedding. That was the same son who gave his dad a kidney some years later. Some family, isn’t it?

This account is about a real friend whose friendship doesn’t diminish with time, distance or circumstances. With friends like that helping you, navigating the uncertainties of life is easier.

This is my Scripture for individuals such as these who help pave the way for others:

Proverbs 17:17

A true friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Make a list of your friends and acknowledge their input in your life and be thankful to God for them.

Think about it.

Gary