Flying By Instruments

T

he fog was terrible.  Never, in 25 years of flying for a commercial airline, had Joe seen such a thick bank of fog.  Visibility was zero and he could barely make out the windshield wipers as they brushed aside the millions of water droplets hitting the glass panes as he sped through the clouds.  A few moments earlier the control tower had radioed that it was time to start his descent toward the airport.  The tower had also informed him that the fog was thick on the ground and that he would be landing solely on instruments.

A quick check with his co-pilot confirmed that all the instruments were working at optimal levels and that the plane was ready to begin its descent.  So Joe and his crew followed all the procedures and prepared the plane for a landing by instruments.  The last step was to set the instruments properly and to obey them, no matter what.  This was very difficult for Joe.  Although he had learned in flight school to trust his instruments, and although he had performed this procedure hundreds of times, this time it was different.  He really struggled with the last setting yet he knew that without the instruments there was no way he could land the plane.

Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?  There are times in the Christian life when the thick fog of doubt surrounds us.  Visibility is zero and we can’t see clearly enough to know where the next step should be nor where it will take us.  Our instinct is to remain still, not moving until the fog lifts and we can see clearly enough to proceed.  That’s when God calls out to us and tells us to move forward, to take the next step.  Like Joe, we can’t depend on our eyes; we have to fly solely by instruments, and for the Christian, that means by faith.

The Scriptures are chock full of examples of great men and women who lived their lives by faith.  They placed their trust in God and when things around them were foggy and obscured, they trusted him and proceeded, trimming their instruments to his word and placing their trust in him.  One of the most prominent of all those who exercised great faith in God is Abraham.  He knew what it was like to walk according to faith, to step out when the way ahead wasn’t clearly marked, and to fly completely by instruments.

Hebrews 11:8 demonstrates very clearly how Abraham trusted in the instrument of faith and it holds for us today a great example and lesson of how we should follow God.  “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.”  Notice the last six words of this text.  Abraham obeyed God’s voice even though God never told him where he was going.  The only promise God made about this journey was that he would show Abraham the place he had prepared for him as an everlasting inheritance.

So Abraham flew by instruments.  He packed up his belongings and his family and started out for parts unknown, trusting God all the way, taking one step at a time.  All around Abraham, thick fog obscured his sight.  He had no idea where he was going but his instruments always showed him to be right on course as long as he followed God’s leading and his commands.  In the end, Abraham arrived and received the God’s promise.  He landed safely because he trusted in God and kept his instruments trimmed to the proper settings.

A

nd what about Joe and his passengers?  They arrived safely, landing by instruments exactly where and when the tower told them.  And what about us?  Is our walk with God such that we can fly by instruments?  When dense fog surrounds us are we comfortable to set the instruments to God’s commands and follow the course laid out for us?  Does our experience show that we can trust God no matter what the surrounding circumstances of life?  Can we say with all assurance that we are flying by instruments today?