Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
(Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV)
It was getting late, and I was anxious to get home. There had already been a flight delay, and from what I could tell, the pilot had taken off to the west. East was toward home, and after takeoff I kept waiting for a quick turn toward my home airport. Like any type-A surgeon, I knew where I was going and thought I knew how to get there. Two, three, maybe four minutes went by, and we still hadn’t turned. What was this pilot thinking? I wanted to get back home!
Then I peered out my window in all directions. Behind us I saw the lights of Denver, Colorado. We were headed east, in the right direction. If the pilot had gone in the direction I had thought was correct, we should have been way off course. Face it, I only had a small airplane-window view of my surroundings, but I thought I had things figured out. The pilot not only had a better view, but he also had all of the latest technology showing him where to go.
How much is that like the way I try to guide my life from an airplane window-sized view of life? Jesus, of course, has the full view of the present, past, and future. He understands many things about which I do not have a clue, but I still think I know better. Jesus, in contrast to our pilot, will turn the controls over to me at my request. But, oh, what a mess I make in getting off course when I take control. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord… He will make your paths straight”–straight toward home, even when it feels like you are going wrong direction.
–Du Wayne A. Carlson, LLUSM class of 1989