I have a passion for WWII history, and I just finished going through a book on the 8th Air Force flying out of England during that time. It was incredibly dangerous duty and so many aircrewmen didn’t make it out alive. So often the planes would be shot up by enemy fighters or by anti-aircraft guns from the ground. One of the most vulnerable spots were the four engines that kept the bombers flying. A piece of “flak” or a series of bullets could not only knock an engine out, but could easily set the gas, oil and hydraulic fluid on fire. It was not uncommon for returning crews to have one or more engines that had been so damaged that they provided no power for the plane. It was still possible for the aircraft to make its way from the European target back to England, but there was one thing that each crew had to do. Because they would have less engine power, they would have to make the plane as light as possible. They would take the heavy machine guns, leftover ammo, radios and even the top-secret bombsight and smash it and throw it out of the aircraft. Tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment would be dumped, usually in the English Channel. And if they could reduce the excess weight enough, they could make it back home and complete their mission. But they had to get rid of virtually anything that they didn’t need to survive. Our lives in Christ are a lot like that. There are a lot of things that pose danger to us and our life journey with this Jesus of the Bible. We are told to take every weight that would slow us down or keep us from finishing our mission here on earth and throw it overboard. There are lots of things that can drag us down and especially our sin that can prove deadly to our ending our mission here on earth successfully. Some of the things that we will have to ditch will seem valuable to us and will often be hard to throw out of our craft. But it will allow us to make it home safely and walk away from our mission, this life, not only as survivors, but as champions. So, look around and if there are things that don’t really need to be on board with you in this life, think about chucking them out the window. And when the day comes that you finally “land” you will be welcomed as conquering heroes in a place you have never been but will forever be your home. Lighten the load and bring it home!
Here’s our Bible verse for today...
Hebrews 12:1-2 NLT Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. (2) We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.
Remember I’m praying for you!
With love, PJ
Here’s our Bible verse for today...
Hebrews 12:1-2 NLT Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. (2) We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.
Remember I’m praying for you!
With love, PJ