Flight Plan

How does a pilot get where he wants to go? ...He gets behind the controls of an airplane and guides it to its destination. And you might think, especially on a one-man flight, that this is a solo endeavor. But the truth is, a pilot is never flying alone. He has constant companions guiding him, even when he is out of radio contact with the tower. We call these guides instruments. Every good pilot has learned to control his thoughts, feelings, and natural instincts and to rely on the instruments in front of him for guidance. If he decides to override his instruments and go with his gut feelings, he can easily get off course. But his decisions are only as good as the guages are accurate, for if they are off even by a small margin, the pilot could be in trouble. A small difference of a few degrees in a flight path can make a huge difference in where the plane ends up.

In life, as in flying, it is easy to get off course. And this can happen even when you know where you are going. So, we'll try to convince you that in order to get where you want to go, you must have the right instruments in your life. You need something to give you an objective perspective on where you are and where you need to go from there. Even when things are going relatively well, your perspective can easily become skewed by uncontrolled emotions, regrets, wrong desires, or a lack of information. The result is drifting far from your intended destination.

That is a small section of the Introduction of "Community" by GroupLink/North Point Ministries. It goes on to explain that the instruments are the people in our lives. I was reading this yesterday and I just had to stop... I am so incredibly grateful for the quality of people in my life. My parents have truly gotten me to where I am today with their unconditional love and support. I am me because of their love and guidance. Shad and Mary have been a huge, integral part of my life since high school. And, I have had more quality friendships and relationships than some people experience in a lifetime, much less in a couple of years. ...Thanks to all the aforementioned and those left unnamed, I've really begun to appreciate and enjoy my journey... I've said before I'm a destination person-- I just want to get there. But I've realized that the future is going to be what it is going to be. All we've got is today! :-)