Walking in victory in the midst of turbulence, By Ayo Akerele

Friends, He is the pilot. You are not the pilot. Trust Him with your life. Get a genuine visa (salvation) on your passport. Wear the belt of truth which is the word. Follow the flight plan (follow His plan for your life). If you do this, you will never miss your reward when our plane finally lands and you stand before the immigration and customs department of heaven.

One of the scariest experiences of my life happened on a flight from Aberdeen, Scotland to Marseille, France in January 2007.  We were right above the North Sea, one of the primary routes of the famed Titanic, when we suddenly entered into a ferocious turbulence that forced the pilot to lower the altitude of the plane, so drastically. What’s going on here? Are we crashing into the sea? These and many more questions raced like thunder bolts through my mind as I froze on my seat with my heart in my mouth, while watching the plane drop down in altitude. Thankfully, the drop in altitude was halted, and we resumed ascension till we reached more than thirty thousand feet and subsequently landed safely in France.

I hate turbulences with a passion. I am not an aviation expert, but one thing seems to be clear and inevitable: if a plane must fly in the air, turbulences are non-negotiable. Trained pilots know how to navigate their ways around turbulence. Turbulence don’t normally destroy a plane; first, it reveals what a plane is made of — the quality of materials the manufacturers used in putting the plane together. Second, it shows the quality of the skills and training of the pilot who is manning the plane. Interestingly, our lives as Christians on earth share striking similarities with the operation of a plane in the air. Prior to every journey, the plane must be fueled, re-tooled, examined, and maintained, in accordance with aviation standards and practices. Similarly, while we are on earth, we must regularly re-fuel with the power of the Holy Spirit through prayers and the study of the word. We must be re-tooled and re-examined, and maintained. Apostle Paul once said, “examine yourself whether you are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5), speaking to the process of examining our motives and character to ensure compliance and alignment with the will of God in the core manual of destiny, the Holy Bible.

As the plane begins its journey, several safety standards and practices are re-visited and announced to passengers. Air hostesses do a demonstration of the in-flight safety practices and procedures in the event of an emergency. To forestall any crises, safety simulations are displayed on screens, seat belt procedures are explained and monitored by air hostesses. They actually spend some time on this seat belt matter. Further, in-flight benefits like food services and restroom provisions are announced to passengers. Similarly, as we take off in the journey of life as a true follower of Christ, our pilot, the Lord Jesus Himself, together with His appointed air hostesses, his true ministers, take you and I through various sessions and processes of training, coaching, discipleship, and mentoring. These true ministers deploy the manufacturers’ manual, the Bible, to explain our benefits in Christ after salvation, procedures for accessing these benefits, spiritual safety measures to overcome satanic turbulences. Lastly, they spend a lot of time explaining to us the benefits of using our seat belts. This seat belt is what Apostle Paul calls “the belt of truth” in Ephesians 6:14:

“Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.”

In our journey in life, once we give our lives to Jesus, and we begin our journey with Him, we cannot change the direction mid-flight. We don’t control the flight. We don’t determine the destination. He determines the destination based on the agreed destiny in our original flight plan with God. Some will attempt to change the destination mid-air, and will be classified as spiritual hijackers. All we need to do is to trust Him.

As the belt in the plane hooks us to our seats, providing stability for us in the event of any storm or turbulence in the air, so the belt of truth provides us with stability on our journey in life. This belt of truth must be fastened if we must survive spiritual turbulences in marriage, ministry, career, and even in government. This belt of truth is the word (John 8:32). The word is the stabilising factor of our destiny. Everything must be measured and calibrated on the basis of the word. If it is not found in the word, it must not be found in our world.

Finally, as the plane begins to fly into the clouds, the pilot charts the course. The pilot leverages the original destination that was his original intent, based on the flight plan. The passenger cannot change the destination, mid-air. Those who attempt to force a plane, mid-air, to another destination other than what was agreed with the pilot from the headquarters, are classified as hijackers; they are branded criminals.

The same thing holds for you and I. In our journey in life, once we give our lives to Jesus, and we begin our journey with Him, we cannot change the direction mid-flight. We don’t control the flight. We don’t determine the destination. He determines the destination based on the agreed destiny in our original flight plan with God. Some will attempt to change the destination mid-air, and will be classified as spiritual hijackers. All we need to do is to trust Him. He will fly us to our destination, despite the turbulences or storms on the way.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

I thought they would treat us a homogenous group. Never. Everybody must stand for himself before the immigration. The same holds for the journey of life. As we walk with Him in this flight of destiny, a day is coming when we will all stand before His judgement seat. It won’t be a homogenous event. Every man must account for his life, and receive the reward or judgment for his stewardship on earth.

Finally, as our plane landed in France, we all formed a line to visit the immigration and customs people. Those who were found wanting were not allowed into the Kingdom of France. I thought they would treat us a homogenous group. Never. Everybody must stand for himself before the immigration. The same holds for the journey of life. As we walk with Him in this flight of destiny, a day is coming when we will all stand before His judgement seat. It won’t be a homogenous event. Every man must account for his life, and receive the reward or judgment for his stewardship on earth.

“For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.” (2 Corinthians 5:10)

Friends, He is the pilot. You are not the pilot. Trust Him with your life. Get a genuine visa (salvation) on your passport. Wear the belt of truth which is the word. Follow the flight plan (follow His plan for your life). If you do this, you will never miss your reward when our plane finally lands and you stand before the immigration and customs department of heaven.

Ayo Akerele, a leadership and system development strategist, and minister of the word, writes from Canada and can be reached through ayoakerele2012@gmail.com.