A pastor had been on a long flight between church conferences. The first
warning of the approaching problems came when the sign on the airplane
flashed on: Fasten Your Seat Belts. Then, after a while, a calm voice
said, "We shall not be serving the beverages at this time as we are
expecting a little turbulence. Please be sure your seat belt is fastened."As
the pastor looked around the aircraft, it became obvious that many of the
passengers were becoming apprehensive. Later, the voice on the intercom
said, "We are so sorry that we are unable to serve the meal at this time.
The turbulence is still ahead of us."And then the storm broke.
The ominous cracks of thunder could be heard even above the roar of the
engines. Lightning! Lit up the darkening skies, and within moments that
great plane was like a cork tossed around on a celestial ocean. One moment
the airplane was lifted on terrific currents of air; the next, it dropped as
if it were about to crash.The pastor confessed that he shared the discomfort
and fear of those around him. He said, "As I looked around the plane, I
could see that nearly all the passengers were upset and alarmed. Some were
praying. The future seemed ominous and many were wondering if they would
make it through the storm.Then, I suddenly saw a little girl. Apparently
the storm meant nothing to her. She had tucked her feet beneath her as she
sat on her seat; she was reading a book and everything within her small
world was calm and orderly. When the plane was being buffeted by the
terrible storm when it lurched this way and that, as it rose and fell with
frightening severity, when all the adults were scared half to death, that
marvelous child was completely composed and unafraid.It was not surprising
therefore, that when the plane finally reached its destination and all the
passengers were hurrying to disembark, our pastor lingered to speak to the
girl whom he had watched for such a long time. Having commented about the
storm and the behavior of the plane, he asked why she had not been
afraid.The child replied, "Cause my Daddy's the pilot, and he's taking me
home."There are many kinds of storms that buffet us. Physical, mental,
financial, domestic and many other storms can easily and quickly darken our
skies and throw our plane into apparently uncontrollable movement. We have
all known such times and it is much easier to be at rest when our feet are
on the ground than when we are being tossed about a darkened sky.But, let us
always remember: Our Father is the Pilot. He is in control and taking us
home. We don't have to be afraid.

In Christ Love....