A friend of ours decided that the best way to celebrate her 18th birthday was to jump from an airplane and parachute to the ground. I was excited for her. It sounded great for this adventurous young lady.
Then she invited anyone who was interested to jump with her.
Well, that would not be me. I don't fly anywhere, let alone with the intention of leaving the plane mid flight.
However, my 66 year old mother decided that she wanted to make the jump.
Her Dad had always wanted to fly a plane and she figured he would have wanted to skydive too.
So, her excuse was that she was doing it for her dad.
I knew that she was just excited about the adventure.
If you read my personal blog you know that we showed up on an excruciatingly hot day
for the sky dive. Two of the four who had signed up to jump were able to do so,
and were successful.
However, when it was Mom's turn a nasty thunderstorm blew up and the flight was cancelled.
No worries.
They rescheduled.
Great!
I got to go through all of the worry longer and one more time.
Well, that day came and we trudged out to the airfield.
We had quite a group.
The teens brought a game and sat in a circle playing together.
Younger ones flitted here and there watching everything they could
take in.
To our left parachutes were carefully packed.
This being the most important factor in a skydive.
Those packing the chutes chattered quietly as they intently
focused on taking the large chute and carefully making it as tiny as
was humanly possible and putting it into a tiny backpack.
This was the lifeline by which a human life would depend as they left the plane.
As Mom got into the plane I couldn't believe she was actually doing this crazy
thing....you know jumping out of an airplane.
She said it didn't hit her until she was approaching altitude and the
jump was imminent.
Suddenly the door was open and, as it was a tandem jump,
the jump master was barking orders in her ear.
He told her to let go of the plane and step out.
In this moment she looked at her hand,
tightly gripping the plane and willed it to let go.
It would not.
Smart hand, if you ask me!
Now, this plane is stalled so that the jumpers can safely clear
the propellers and other dangerous situations.
Time is of the essence.
This meant that the jumpmaster had to pry that rebellious hand
from its grip and they were out of the plane.
Mom said after the fact that she realized then how much trust she
was placing in both her jump master and her parachute.
She also noted that in order to engage that trust she had to take the first step.
In our lives this is also true.
We come to situations that make us want to just stop and stay where we are
but if we do we miss out on the adventure or blessing we are there for.
Now, before they would allow any of these tandem jumps there were
a couple of hours of instruction.
Very important instruction.
If the newby did certain things wrong it would put both the
jumper and the
jump master in very real danger.
Listening to their instructor was paramount to a successful return
to the ground.
However, the instructors told the students that if necessary
they would override them and work to set things right.
So it is for us in our Christian walk.
The most important instruction is that of our need for a "jump master".
We can try as hard as we know to be good and make it to Heaven.
Kind of a reverse jump.
However, that is impossible.
None of us can achieve this on our own.
For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 3:23
For us, in order to engage that jump we must take the first step
of placing our trust in Jesus and His saving work on the
cross.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish
but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
He will guide us safely to the other shore.
When God looks on us in judgement it is not us He will
see, but Jesus in our stead.
We will be hiding deeply in the Robes of Jesus
finding grace and acceptance in Him.
Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
Philippians 3:19-21 NIV
Can you imagine?
