Thursday, August 4, 2005
My friend, Jerry, was a pilot. And not long ago, he went home to be with the Lord that he loved. At his memorial service, his son told some of the stories of Jerry's very adventurous life. Like the time just a couple of years ago when he was flying a twin-engine plane over our area. This made the headlines - both engines went out on him! Jerry was pretty unflappable. That's a pretty good characteristic for a pilot, huh? He quickly surveyed the ground to find the safest place to make an emergency landing. His choice - the local golf course. There weren't any golfers out there. It's a good thing. (They would have really been teed off, I suppose.) He started to bring the plane down for a landing, but as he neared the ground, he saw the one obstacle between him and a safe landing - a huge oak tree coming right at him. And he had no power to help him miss it. So Jerry quickly talked to God about it. He just said, "Lord, it will take a miracle. Please do one." And at that moment, one engine leaped to life for just a moment; just long enough to give Jerry the lift he needed to clear that tree.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Last-Minute Lift."
My friend was rescued by a last-minute miracle. Do you know how many times God works that way in the lives of His children? That may be what God has in mind for your situation right now. Except all you can see is the tree coming at you!
Here's some encouragement. Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Isaiah 43:16-19, "This is what the Lord says - He who made a way through the sea (or over the tree), a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick." Now He's talking about the mightiest army on earth of its time - the Egyptian Army. It looked like they would crush these helpless Jews who were standing trapped by the Red Sea. But God blew them out like we blow out a candle.
You know those people had to be looking at the water in front of them and the approaching army behind them and saying, "No way." Kind of like Jerry's situation, it looked like there was no way to do anything but crash. But then God says, "Way." And our Lord, who is the great Way Maker, removes an obstacle that looks absolutely impossible to remove, or He lifts us over it as in my friend's case.
He says, "Do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up. Do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." That's Isaiah 43. God says, "I want you to trust Me for a bold new thing I'm going to do in your life." We say, "But what about the sea? What about the tree?" He says, "Remember, all the other miracles of the past? I'm the same God who did those. I will make a way where there is no way. I will provide resources where there seem to be no resources - in the desert - in the wasteland."
And when will He do this? Probably at the same time He did it for the Jews by the Red Sea. The same time He did it for Jerry who was about to crash into a tree - the last minute. That way, you will learn the most trust and He will get the most glory. So, go to this awesome Lord and say, "Lord, a miracle is my only hope. And only You can do the miracle. Please do what only You can do." And as that tree is getting closer and closer, trust the God of the last-minute lift!