The Turbulent-Free Life

“H

ow was your flight?”  This was the first question my dad asked me as I climbed into the car at the airport in Charlotte, North Carolina.  “The flight, “ I said, “was fine, except for the turbulence!”  My statement was indeed accurate.  For the majority of the flight, it was smooth sailing.  But every once in a while, we would encounter pockets of rough air and the small jet was bustled and jostled from all sides and in all directions—not exactly my idea of a swell time.

The more I fly, the more unrealistic about flight I become.  I expect the flight to be smooth from takeoff to landing with no incidents of turbulence, no hints of gusty winds aloft, and certainly no bumps, rattles, or shakes during the flight.  I know what you’re thinking.  “You’ve got to kidding, Blake.  Get real!”  And I would certainly agree with you that I need to be a little less naïve about flying. Hey, what can I say?  I’m an eternal optimist!

The turbulence does serve its purpose though and is a good lesson about living the Christian life.  Although being strapped in a metal tube at 38,000 feet is no picnic when the winds are buffeting, it is also the safest place to be in that environment.  The only place of safety, the only place where you can survive is inside that airplane.  It has been designed to withstand the pressure exerted on it by the atmosphere and it has been designed to fly in all weathers and in all conditions to deliver its cargo safely to its destination.  The very fact the plane is designed and built with these conditions in mind means the engineer knew there would be bumps along the way and made provision for them.  That turbulence exists comes as no surprise to the designer or the pilot, although it may be unnerving to the passenger.

The number of Christians who believe a walk with God should have no bumps, shakes, rattles, or turbulence is surprising.  Yet, nowhere in the Scriptures are we promised that life gets easier when we become a Christian.  Nowhere in the Bible does God promise that once we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord that the road automatically becomes smooth and we just sit back and enjoy the ride.  No! It is in the difficult times of life that we understand and learn just how faithful our God is and just how much strength, assurance, and grace He gives to us.

Jesus’ words in John 17 should teach us that there will be bumps in the road of life.  In John 17:15 he says, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one."  This verse is taken from the section of John’s gospel known as the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus.  If you have never read it or if it has been some time since you have, I invite you to do so now.  This is where Jesus prayed for his disciples because he knew the hour for his crucifixion had come and that their lives would change and become turbulent.  Notice he does not ask God to take remove them from the world but to protect them from the evil one.  In other words, Jesus did not ask for smooth or turbulent-free living for the disciples; he asked for protection.  You only need protection if you are in danger, not out of it!

At 38,000 feet, the airplane protected us from the turbulence outside. It did not take us out of it as my shot nerves and aching muscles would tell you.  But only in that turbulence was my faith tested and rewarded.  Had it not been for the rough and bumpy patches in the flight path, I would have never appreciated the long tracts of smooth air nor the firm ground beneath me.  If this is the case with a flight, my friend, how much more true is this in our walk with God?  There is no such thing as a turbulent-free life and I thank God there isn’t!  Only in the most turbulent times can you here His voice saying, “Peace, be still!”  Thank God for the bumps in your road today!  Bon voyage!