Love Letters | Instructions

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.  Psalm 32:81

Jerod’s hands were sweaty on the control stick and he couldn’t remember the last time he took a breath. “Easy now,” Instructor Pat said. “Just nudge it gently and begin your descent. No, don’t watch the clouds. Keep your eyes on the instrument panel. Trust it. Your visual perception can fool you, but the instruments will keep you upright.” Jerod licked dry lips and nodded. “It’s sure tempting to focus on those birds ahead…and the terminal down there.” Pat smiled. “Yeah, at first. But most experienced pilots have horror stories of what happened when they did that. And some didn’t live to tell about it. Don’t be one of those.”

When we invite Jesus to take the controls of our lives, He asks us to stop relying on what we can see and understand. Our own perception can fool us. We peer into our future and see nothing but storm clouds. Disaster. A sure nosedive. But God says, “Keep your eyes on my word. What does it say about Me? What does it say about you?” We take a deep breath of faith and refuse to look down. With eyes on His word, we ignore the world’s opinions, our family’s brokenness, and our own failures. We focus on God’s promises, His commands and instructions. His instructions will keep us upright. Many who trusted their own perception didn’t live to tell about it. But those who listen to the Instructor will fly right through the storms.

Final Thought:  Who or what is at the controls of your life: Is your faulty perception or is it the unchanging word of God?

Prayer: Father, when I take my eyes off you, I start into a nosedive. I panic when I look at my situation or my future and I forget that I’m flying with the Instructor. Help me keep my eyes on your word and not my circumstances. In Jesus’ name, Amen.