IS YOUR BELT FASTENED?

I do so hope that none of those reading this column are State Patrolmen for the Great State of Ohio and know who I am and what I drive, or the roads I travel often for that matter. If Terri has told me once she has told me a hundred times to FASTEN MY SEAT BELT! Now I do wear my seat belt, I just don’t always fasten it before I start moving. Now I am sure that not a single one of you husbands out there are guilty of such a thing, but here I sit, guilty as charged. As I confess to you today I am reminded of an incident that happened last year in Chicago. I fly Southwest Airlines when I go to St. Louis or Kansas City where our denomination is headquartered and inevitably I find my self making a connection in Chicago’s Midway airport. This time was no different really from many others except… well, you know that moment when the plane begins to move, you’ve got your reading material all ready, you bags in the overhead or tucked neatly under the seat in front of you and it is time to get your belt on. The time had come and as I pulled the belt around my waist to fasten it I thought it felt, uh a little loose. OK by me, I don’t like it so tight my eye’s bulge anyway so I thought, I’m good to go. Chicago has the well-earned nickname, the windy city and it had been storming so the runways were a little wet. The pilot thought it prudent to test the brakes for whatever reason. So he would roll forward on the way to our departure runway and he would tap the brakes. It was during the taping of the brakes that I slid forward a little to far. Wait a minute, I’ve got my belt on, Terri would be so proud, but yet I found my knees making quick and immediate contact with the back of the seat in front of me. Shouldn’t have happened, my belt is on. Sure enough, looking down I could see it securely fasted in my lap, and yet another tap of the brakes, another knee or two in the back of the passenger in front of me. Now at this point, the tapping of the brakes was finished and we were quickly taxiing toward our runway and I was sure it was gonna be one of those hit the runway moving and don’t stop till your airborne kind of take offs, well it was. Still I am looking at my belt trying to figure out my problem. Alas there it was, my belt had come loose from the side of the seat, I mean where it’s not supposed to come loose if you know what I’m trying to say. You may have heard about a cracked wing or two in Southwest’s fleet, but I know of a seatbelt problem on one 727! “Uh, little help here!” NOW WHAT? Here I am taking off in the windy city, and it was windy. With a defective seat belt no less. Honestly, I’m not really worried about the belt helping me if we crash, but I’ve been in a lot of turbulence before and those belts do come in handy when you’re flopping around and trying to climb to your cruising altitude! Just picture me bouncing off the ceiling and landing a few rows back in the lap of a some grumpy tractor salesman from De Moines who’s tired and weighs about 300 lbs! Hey friend, it pays to have your belt fastened!
Living in a world of many dangers we are often reminded that we need to be prepared. From wearing a seat belt faithfully to protecting our nation from dangers foreign or domestic. From locking your doors at night to washing your hands before you eat. Being ready just in case just makes good sense. This is in the truest sense important when we begin to discuss the condition of the soul of man, and the reality of eternity. So let me ask you, do you have your seat belt on spiritually? I have long loved Paul’s words to the little church at Philippi on the northern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Paul speaks of a life that is so confident in it’s experience with God so that whatever comes, that person is reminded that what God has begun, he will finish. I love that! The belt is fastened so let the winds blow, we can be confident. Let the turbulence rock the vessel, we can be confident. Let the problems come our way, let the trials block our path, let the things that go wrong go wrong and in the midst of it all, with our belts of faith fastened tight, we can have the confidence that God is still there!

Two Stories and I’m done here. John McKay, of the NFL, tells a story illustrating the supreme confidence of University of Alabama football coach Bear Bryant: "We were out shooting ducks, and finally, after about three hours, here comes one lonely duck. The Bear fires. And that duck is still flying today. But Bear watched the duck flap away, looked at me and said, 'John, you are witnessing a genuine miracle. There flies a dead duck!'" there’s confidence for ya! Story number two, In July, 1911, a stuntman named Bobby Leach went over Niagara Falls in a specially designed steel drum and lived to tell about it. Although he suffered minor injuries, he survived because he recognized the tremendous dangers involved in the feat, and because he had done everything he could to protect himself from harm. Several years after that incident, while skipping down the street in New Zealand, Bobby Leach slipped on an orange peeling, fell, and badly fractured his leg. He was taken to a hospital where he later died of complications from that fall. He received a greater injury walking down the street than he sustained in going over Niagara. He was not prepared for danger in what he assumed to be a safe situation. Is your belt fastened?

Comments

[wes humble]

You always make such great spiritual applications. I wish I would do that more instead of rambling on my blog.