We were returning to Timaru from Hamilton, and it took two flights on a smaller turbo-propeller plane — one flight from Hamilton to Wellington and another from Wellington to Timaru.
On our second plane trip, I noticed three airport personnel on the ground through the window when I took my seat.
A woman spun the propeller with one hand while holding a mobile phone in the other, receiving instructions and reporting observations, while her two co-workers observed and provided feedback.
All passengers had already embarked and taken their seats when the flight attendant announced there would be a short delay because engineers were still checking the plane.
My wife said being delayed is better than being on an unsafe plane. As I watched the ground crew do their job through my window, I couldn’t help but think, “Are we in trouble?”
Finally, after 30 minutes, the ground crew finished all their checks. The attendant closed the plane’s door and announced the flight’s commencement.
How sure are we now that our plane will take us safely to our destination?
Nothing is sure, to be honest. Travelling brings excitement and joy, but James 4:13-17 warns us not to boast about tomorrow.
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16 But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.
17 Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
James 4:13-17
As a regular passenger, my only assurance is that I fully trusted that the flight captain and his team had done their best due diligence to ensure we safely arrived at our destination.
I don’t know the flight captain. I haven’t seen him nor his co-pilot because the cockpit is inaccessible to regular passengers, but I put my trust in the flight attendant’s words that the names she mentioned were real and capable people flying the craft.
Not only that, I must follow all that she instructs for a safe and orderly flight.
We can only pray for travelling mercies and grace, confident that we have the Almighty Pilot guiding and protecting us in our journey.
That is how faith works.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).
If I can put my life on the line on an hour-long flight, placing my trust in the flight team whom I don’t know personally, then how much more to God who loves me, who sent His son, Jesus Christ, to redeem me from sin and give eternal life.
Amen.
Wonderful and thought provoking article! I have the same thoughts when we flew from Cebu to Iloilo this May 2024. We boarded a prop engine plane seating 2 and 2 and was almost like a bus! It was a Canadian Bombardier De Haviland plane. It was loud. The staff were friendly and by God’s grace we landed in Sta. Barbara that evening. We travel; drive, fly, walk but we leave it all to Him for our safety at all times. Thank you Pastor Jonan. We love reading your posts.
Maybe because we have learnt to trust an unseen God it makes it easier to out our faith in those who fly planes?
Loved going in a 4 seater Palmerston North to Auckland once and to Taupo over crater lakes of mountains, once.
Completely fearless! But then I absolutely know that death is not the end…
Maybe that helps! Blessings from Porirua.