April 19, 2023
by Reverend Dan on April 19, 2023"Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life . . . who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"
Matthew 6:25, 27
A friend asked yesterday if I’d like to take a short flight with him today to get away from the busyness of life and sample some of North Carolina’s finest barbeque. When I looked at my calendar my heart sank because I am booked solid and knew there was no way I could make it happen. But the thought of flying reminded me of a story.
In the pioneer days of aviation, there was a pilot who was attempting to make a flight around the world. He had designated stopping points to fuel up, rest and eat, but he never stayed at one very long. Two hours into the flight after one of those stops, he heard a noise in his plane and finally recognized it as the gnawing of a rat. He realized that while his plane had been on the ground a rat had gotten in the engine, and for all he knew the rat was now gnawing through an important wire, cable, or control of the plane. He became anxious over the situation, and in his panic couldn't think of a solution, especially since there was nowhere around where he could land. So, he made the only choice he could: he continued on. But then a funny thing happened. As the pilot continued his ascent to his cruising altitude, he noticed that the gnawing had ceased. And it was then that he realized that a rat is made to live on the ground and under it, and as such it cannot survive in the atmosphere of the heights to which he had climbed.
Worry is the rodent of our lives. It gnaws at us and concerns us until eventually, it consumes us and our ability to think clearly. But like a rodent, worry cannot live when we choose to climb above the world around us and go to the throne in Heaven. Worry cannot breathe in the atmosphere of prayer. Worry dies when we climb above the things of this life and choose to live our lives in the beauty of God's presence. I encourage you to "take off" today, and fly to the Heavens on the wings of prayer. Don't spend time worrying about what may be, for worry will not change it. God will supply our needs, and that's all that matters.
backMatthew 6:25, 27
A friend asked yesterday if I’d like to take a short flight with him today to get away from the busyness of life and sample some of North Carolina’s finest barbeque. When I looked at my calendar my heart sank because I am booked solid and knew there was no way I could make it happen. But the thought of flying reminded me of a story.
In the pioneer days of aviation, there was a pilot who was attempting to make a flight around the world. He had designated stopping points to fuel up, rest and eat, but he never stayed at one very long. Two hours into the flight after one of those stops, he heard a noise in his plane and finally recognized it as the gnawing of a rat. He realized that while his plane had been on the ground a rat had gotten in the engine, and for all he knew the rat was now gnawing through an important wire, cable, or control of the plane. He became anxious over the situation, and in his panic couldn't think of a solution, especially since there was nowhere around where he could land. So, he made the only choice he could: he continued on. But then a funny thing happened. As the pilot continued his ascent to his cruising altitude, he noticed that the gnawing had ceased. And it was then that he realized that a rat is made to live on the ground and under it, and as such it cannot survive in the atmosphere of the heights to which he had climbed.
Worry is the rodent of our lives. It gnaws at us and concerns us until eventually, it consumes us and our ability to think clearly. But like a rodent, worry cannot live when we choose to climb above the world around us and go to the throne in Heaven. Worry cannot breathe in the atmosphere of prayer. Worry dies when we climb above the things of this life and choose to live our lives in the beauty of God's presence. I encourage you to "take off" today, and fly to the Heavens on the wings of prayer. Don't spend time worrying about what may be, for worry will not change it. God will supply our needs, and that's all that matters.
