DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO?

A young and foolish pilot wanted to sound cool and show who was boss on the aviation frequencies. It was his first time approaching a field during the night time.

Instead of making any official requests to the tower, he said: “Guess who?”

The controller switched the field lights off and replied: “Guess where!”

It important for a pilot to be able to see the place where he is landing! There is a true story about a pilot who was flying a fighter jet in bad weather and was about to make his instrument approach to an airport. The air traffic controller called and asked how much fuel he had. — “Plenty,” he said.

“Well,” the controller said, “We’ve got a little problem. There’s a young pilot who is not instrument rated. He’s lost in the clouds, and we were wondering if you could intercept him and lead him back to the airport.”

“Sure,” the pilot responded. He found the lost plane and pulled up beside it. He called on the radio and told the pilot to look out to his left. When the pilot of this small plane saw the powerful jet, he burst into tears of relief. As far as he was concerned, his life was about over. He would soon run out of fuel and crash.

“Don’t worry,” the test pilot said. “Everything’s going to be OK. I’m going to pull in front of you several hundred yards. Do everything I do. When I turn, I’ll turn gently. All you have to do is do exactly what I do.”

So carefully the leader and the follower turned toward the airport and slowly descended. When they finally broke through the clouds at 500 feet, the frightened pilot saw the most beautiful sight. There in front of him was the runway, and he was perfectly set up to land. What a blessing that the young pilot had someone nearby that he could look to!

There’s a story in the Bible where an ancient king of Judah must have felt that same sense of relief. Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was being threatened by the armies of Ammon, Moab, “and others” (2 Chronicles 20:1). In fact, those armies were so large and so strong, Judah didn’t stand a chance of surviving an assault. There seemed to be nothing Jehoshaphat could do about it, so he turned to God (which, incidentally, is not such a bad place for us to find ourselves!). Eventually, God rescued the people of Judah by causing the armies of the enemy to turn on one another. But it is the prayer of Jehoshaphat that I think is so valuable. In fact, I think this may become my favorite verse in the Bible:

“For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” (2 Chronicles 20:12)

Is there a problem you’re facing in your life that just seems overwhelming? Pray along with Jehoshaphat — “God, I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on you!” Do you have a difficult decision to make and you don’t know which course to take? “God, I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on you!” Are you suffering the attacks of enemies, those who would seek to do you harm? “God, I don’t know what to do, but my eyes are on you!” Pray it today and pray it often.

Alan Smith