BE STILL

BE STILL

 These days, it’s rather easy to be carried away by a troubled and restless spirit.  After all, our world is full of situations that breed anxiety and worry.  We must be still.

 Consider the curious story of Larry Walters, a 33-year-old man who decided he wanted to see his neighborhood from a new perspective.  He went to the army surplus store and bought forty-five used weather balloons.  Then he strapped himself to a lawn chair while several of his friends attached the helium-filled balloons.  Larry took along a six-pack of beer, a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich and a BB gun, figuring he would shoot the balloons one at a time when he wanted to land.

Larry wrongly assumed that the balloons would lift him about 100 feet in the air, and was totally shocked when his chair soared more than 11,000 feet into the sky – smack dab in the middle of the air traffic pattern at Los Angeles International Airport.  Too frightened to shoot any of the balloons, he stayed airborne for more than two hours, which forced the airport to shut down its runways and caused lengthy flight delays across the country.

 Soon after he landed and was cited by the authorities, reporters asked him three questions:

“Were you scared?”

“Yes.”

“Would you do it again?”

“No.”

“Why did you do it?”

“Because,” he said, “you can’t just sit there.”

 Wow!

 During the past year, Belinda and I struggled with major anxiety over custody issues involving our granddaughter.  But in the middle of our stress, we sensed the still, small, inner-voice of the Lord, which restored our confidence and peace: “Be still, and know that I am God.  I will be exalted…” (Psalm 46:10)  Our hope is no longer focused on any person or institution, but solely on God.

 My friends, don’t stress.  Believe His Word.  Jesus never fails.

 Sisters and brothers, be continually blessed, and please (above all else) MAKE SURE YOU ARE READY TO MEET OUR SOON COMING KING. Maranatha!