cleared for
higher living
By Jonas Clark
Whether you are soaring high
amidst the clouds of prosperity, health and wholeness or in danger of
nose-diving into the Atlantic Ocean, the Word has it covered. Discover how to
avoid a "pilot error" as you soar to the heights of spiritual maturity.
Every pilot needs three things: an aircraft, a license and a Pilot Operating
Handbook. Commonly know in aviator circles as a “P.O.H.,” the Pilot Operating
Handbook is required aboard every aircraft. That’s because its pages contain
critical information about the airplane’s operating limitations. The POH tells
us how fast we can fly, how high we can climb, how far we can travel, and how
fast we can descend.
As Christians, our P.O.H. is the Word of God. Just as we would never attempt
to fly a plane without a P.O.H., we should never attempt to travel anywhere
without the Word tucked away in our hearts. After all, Jesus said, “Man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of
God” (Matthew 4:4).
A Christian ascending the heights of spiritual maturity has much in common
with the pilot and examining the aviator’s checklist offers a vivid
illustration with many parallels to how we can soar safely. For example, the
pilot totes an Engine Startup Checklist, a Cold Weather Startup Checklist, and
various types of emergency checklists carefully crafted to help the pilot
avoid trouble in the sometimes not-so-friendly skies.
Take the Engine Startup Checklist. Pilots rely on this as a guide to push all
the right buttons – and in the right order – to make sure all instruments are
a “go.” This checklist helps pilots remember to switch the fuel selector valve
to the proper fuel tank for takeoff. It also reminds them to disengage the
elevator-locking mechanism. If pilots forget to do this, then they could find
themselves at the end of the runway traveling more than 100 mph, unable to get
into the air and trying to avoid the trees. Ouch!
 We’ve all
experienced life’s emergencies, those serious situations that happen
unexpectedly and demand immediate action. That’s when it becomes absolutely
critical to respond appropriately – according to the Word. If we had an
in-flight emergency, then we would immediately grab our Emergency Procedures
Checklist and search for some quick solutions. As believers our checklist is
the Word. Everything we need to know about victorious living is written in the
Bible. Whether we are soaring high amidst the clouds of prosperity, health and
wholeness or in danger of nose-diving into the Atlantic Ocean, the Word has it
covered.
Mechanical failure: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has
determined that there are certain “reoccurring” causes for aviation
emergencies, such as mechanical failure, pilot error, power loss, operating
outside normal limitations, poor maintenance, and fuel starvation. According
to the FAA mechanical failure is the leading cause of aviation emergencies. A
mechanical failure happens when the pilot has failed to use his tools
properly. That improper use can lead to an emergency.
As Christians we have tools - including prayer, worship, studying the Word of
God, fellowship, walking in faith and love, the blood of Jesus, and the
authority to use God’s Word, etc. – that enable us to avoid mechanical
failures in life, but, like the pilot, we must use our tools properly.
Alternatively, if we don’t know His Word (A.K.A. our spiritual Pilot Operating
Handbook) then we can’t effectively apply it to our lives. And without proper
use of this all-important tool, we could suffer from a mechanical failure. The
good news is the Word of God serves as our emergency checklist when things go
wrong. It’s never too late to find and apply the Scriptural truth that will
help us steady our plane.
Pilot error: The second reason for an aviation emergency, according to
the FAA, is pilot error. Can you imagine that the pilot (that’s you and me)
could actually be one of the most common causes of an emergency situation?
Looking at ourselves as the problem is typically the last thing we want to do.
But a self-caused emergency situation could occur simply by believing things
that are not true. When we have a wrong belief system, we will find ourselves
in an emergency somewhere along our course of flight. In aviation we would
call that a “wrong interpretation of the flight instruments” and it could lead
us into drastic situations.
If we believe wrong, then we can’t have a solid biblical foundation for faith
to stand on. Solid faith must stand on God’s truth alone. This will prevent us
from making a wrong interpretation of life’s events. Interpretation errors can
also be caused by vain traditions, dead religious form or ignorance. Just like
the pilot that is unschooled in the laws of flight can run into serious
problems, ignorance of God’s Word and His will for your life could also cause
you some major problems. God gives us a great solution to wrong interpretation
by telling us to “not be conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2).
Power loss: The FAA cites the third leading cause for aviation
emergencies as power loss. The FAA has brilliantly determined that a power
loss will cause a performance decrease. The FAA is talking about running out
of gas or the engine quitting. But what happens if believers run out of gas?
Could a loss of gas (spiritual power) also cause a decrease in performance in
our lives? If power loss equals decreased performance, then that could also be
a reason for our emergency situations. But the FAA doesn’t stop there. This
federal agency is funded by U.S. taxpayers and has a responsibility to
continue looking for detailed explanations that lead to fewer accidents. To
that end, the FAA has determined that power loss emergencies and accidents
have a variety of causes, such as operating outside normal limitations, poor
maintenance and fuel starvation.
Operating outside limitations: Consider the example of operating
engines beyond their “normal limits.” How can we relate that to spirit life
living? Well, to operate outside our normal limitations could mean that we are
trying to do something that we are not called to do. I once knew a worship
leader who thought he was called to pioneer and pastor a church. The problem
was this man was not called to pastor. I knew if I told him that, then he
would be offended and I would quickly lose any opportunity to speak into his
life. Unfortunately, correction is one of the most difficult things for anyone
to receive. Nobody, especially immature believers, likes correction. Yet, to
me, it was quite obvious that this man was not called to the responsibilities
of a full-time pastoral ministry. A desire alone without a call from God will
soon result in a failure.
What was noticeable, however, was the strong grace of God in his life when he
sang. It was so beautiful to experience a worship service that he was leading.
Sadly, he was not content with leading worship only. He still wanted to
preach. But every time he did, it was dry, boring and void of anointing. In
other words, every time he stepped outside his scope of ministry he bombed
out. Yet when he led worship, there was such a beautiful spiritual climate.
Why? Because the anointing was on the normal operations, or the scope of
ministry, into which he was called.
Poor maintenance: The FAA also says that poor engine maintenance could
cause a power loss. All of us need to maintain our spiritual engines. If we
ignore our spiritual condition, then we could quickly find ourselves in an
emergency situation. We must spend time studying God’s Word and in prayer. Let
me offer you a profound statement: Ministries do not fail overnight. The
reason ministries and people fail is because they continually ignore something
in their lives. They suffer a power loss due to poor spiritual maintenance. We
must never ignore the little foxes because they always spoil the vine.
Fuel starvation: Fuel starvation is another common reason believers
have a power loss. Sometimes we simply run out of gas. Not eating enough or
walking in the Word could cause spiritual fuel starvation. We can’t merely go
through religious motions or we will starve our spirits. We must continue to
feast on the Word. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after
righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6). Those who hunger and
thirst after righteousness will never have a fuel starvation emergency. They
will be full and ready for any long cross-country flight. Don’t let yourself
run out of fuel. Read the Word, pray, hang out with other believers, stay
plugged into your local church, and get back on the cutting edge.
Advance preparation: So now that we have discussed the many causes of
spiritual emergencies, what can we do to prepare for one? Well, let’s ask
ourselves some questions: Have I submitted myself to God? Am I ready to resist
the enemy of my soul when he comes knocking on my door? Am I prepared to step
up and boldly say, “You’d better leave my house alone in the name of Jesus!”?
Will I declare, “Sickness, you’re not going to affect me!” in the face of the
flu and, “Poverty, get away from me!” when my bills aren’t paid? If we have
prepared ourselves for emergencies in advance by writing the Word of God on
the tablet of our hearts, then we will be ready to fight the good fight of
faith.
Don’t jump ship: The next important thing during an in-flight emergency is
to “fly the airplane.” That’s really a profound statement, isn’t it? That
means we don’t break rank and run. We don’t stop doing what we know to do. We
don’t forsake the assembling of ourselves together. We don’t abandon our
airplane when we have an emergency. We resist that emergency and stand fast.
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own
understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths”
(Proverbs 3:5-6). We get out our spiritual checklist – the Word of God –
knowing that Jesus will get us through. We continue doing what we’ve been
trained for. We keep the faith and keep on flying the airplane.
Don’t ignore the crisis: Some pilots are reluctant to accept an
emergency situation during flight. They try to ignore it, which only leads to
more trouble. Just like a pilot who refuses to take action by ignoring the
emergences, some people refuse to take the necessary steps to change their
circumstances. We must never idly accept the emergency situations in our
lives. We must rather attempt to do something about them. Have you ever met
anyone who has stopped resisting negative circumstances and resign himself or
herself to a disaster, as if that were their lot in life? The reality is if we
want change in our lives, then we have to change.
Somebody once said, “If you want to change your tomorrow, then you’ve got to
change what you do today.” We can’t keep repeating what we did yesterday and
think that tomorrow things will be any different. In reality, something
different must take place. That means you and I, the pilots in command, must
make some important choices. Our lives are the result of the choices we made
yesterday. When we are in an emergency situation, we’ve got to do something
different! We can’t ignore the emergency and we can’t give up. The Word says,
“And let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we
faint not” (Galatians 6:9).
Undo what you last did: Sometimes pilots encounter emergencies because
they did something they should not have done. When we have emergencies in our
lives, we should check to see where we went wrong and repent. We need to do a
self-check now and again to allow the Holy Spirit to show us if we are heading
toward a disaster in our life caused by “pilot error.” Perhaps we have
interpreted some things wrong. Perhaps some errors occurred because we
believed wrong or were simply ignorant of the Word.
Perhaps we turned the fuel selector valve to an empty fuel tank. If so, then
we need to change it back. Maybe we set the engine power settings to the wrong
RPM. If so, then we need to change it back. It could be that we have
mistakenly entered into inclement weather. Well then, let’s turn around. Maybe
the engine quit running. If so, then don’t panic. Get that engine started. It
could be that we just flat-out sinned. Anybody can blow it.
If that’s you, then repent, and get your eyes back on Jesus and His truth. He
is your chief piloting instrument. Don’t step into error by taking your eyes
off of Him. He loves you and has a great plan for your life. The Apostle John
wrote, “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
We need to look at what we did right before the emergency and put things back
in order and ask for forgiveness. God made us and he understands us better
than we understand ourselves. Get out the Pilot Operating Handbook and look up
your instructions on how to live. And finally, remember this: The Holy Spirit
has cleared you for takeoff and higher living.
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