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2009 Summer Update! - VanFossens Choices? by Greg VanFossen
I write on the eve of my departure for Texas to pick up the Cessna 206 destined for the Guyana Project. It is my duty to fly it from the Dallas area to Berrien Springs, MI. This is a part of this adventure with God that I am excited about doing as it involves flying an airplane. The trip is approximately 800 miles and may involve going through weather with poor visibility. The key things to avoid will include thunderstorms, which seem to be a popular weather phenomenon in the Midwest. When I passed my instrument pilot practical test in the mid 1980’s, the technology to acquire weather information was only the substance of dreams. I can now go to the Internet and get, in picture form, a depiction of what the weather systems are doing. This requires much less time and provides a more clear understanding of what previously was constructed with specifically defined words delivered in a mechanized fashion over the telephone. Even though much has improved in
Though the above thoughts pertain to aviation, the same basic issues plague other areas of our existence. The information age has brought on more efficient access and faster processing. Now I don’t suffer for lack of information so much as from ambivalence as to what to believe. The determination of which long-distance phone service, Internet provider or diet is the best for the cost can be next to impossible. Even the methods for entering the “Pearly Gates” are peddled by a variety of denominations and their salesmen claiming prophetic ability for the purposes of making a profit. So how does one make choices with all the options and competing marketing strategies designed to overcome the advertising “noise”? Is there something wrong with just arbitrarily choosing what information or other “product” is put before me and deciding if what I have is what works or is less adequate than others are purported to be?
God has repeatedly demonstrated that He works through His church. Jesus used Peter to communicate the Gospel to Cornelius, the woman at the well to draw the community out and Paul to reach the Gentiles. One overt characteristic demonstrated here is that none of these individuals did it for secondary gain. The motives are clear. Peter had a conversion experience that also involved a paradigm shift in his understanding of the Kingdom of Heaven. He was then asked to use his new understanding to the benefit of both the individuals he would come into contact with, and the Kingdom itself. The woman at the well forgot to give Jesus a drink of water and obviously left with intent to return because she left her vessel in her excitement. She wanted the water of life. Paul experienced a lightning bolt from heaven and redirected his zealous approach, which had been “kicking against the pricks.”
In all of this it becomes apparent that the only truly effective method for reaching others for Christ is letting the Spirit work in me. I can talk “theory” (religion, relationship with Christ and how it works) all I want, but the bottom line is that how I go about what I do speaks more loudly than what I say.
As a pilot, I can only truly know what the weather is when I’ve just flown through it. Until then I am just sharing what I’ve read. As a Christian, I have to “live” life in Christ’s path in order to truly know Him. This relationship is accomplished by honestly opening my heart to what He says and living accordingly.
Rainbow and storm just ahead of the plane. Home | Who We Are | What We Do | Ways to Help | Media |
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