Our natural state

The airplane graveyard

Corrosion is defined as the process by which a refined metal reverts back to its natural state. Once corrosion is allowed to begin, it eats away at the airplane like a cancer. If left unchecked it will destroy the airplane. At most airports there is a spot on a ramp nicknamed the graveyard. The graveyard is where airplanes are left to sit and corrode. After a few years of corrosion being allowed to take over, the airplane can no longer fly. Not because the parts are bad, but because it is so corroded inside and out that it is no longer airworthy. 

Free from corrosion 

Sin in our lives works the same way. It causes us to revert back to our natural state: our old sin nature. If left unchecked it will destroy our lives, eating away at us until we are no longer able to fly. The way that pilots and mechanics prevent corrosion is by constant cleaning and inspection inside and outside of the airplane. The parts most susceptible to corrosion, such as the landing gear, engine exhaust areas, and recessed/hidden areas, are constantly checked by maintenance to ensure that the parts are free from corrosion. Seaplanes, which are in constant contact with marine water,are checked daily for corrosion. We need to treat our lives the same way, finding where we are most susceptible to sin and constantly checking to ensure that we are free from sin in those areas. Inspecting ourselves and cleaning ourselves inwardly should be part of our daily routine. Washing ourselves in God's word and in His truth. Keeping ourselves clean from the sin that will destroy us. Planes that are inspected and cleaned look beautiful as they fly through the sky, the sun shinning off their wings. Planes can do a lot more work when they are free of corrosion just as we can do more for God's Kingdom when we are free from sin. 

Fuji T-34

And there is hope for us when we examine ourselves and realize that we have allowed sin to begin its destructive work in our lives. Corrosion can be removed by scraping it away or tearing out a section and replacing a part. Its not easy to free an airplane from corrosion, but with careful perseverance an airplane can be restored. This airplane is a Fuji T-34. It was shipped from Japan to America in 1971. For years it sat at an airport, unable to be flown. A mechanic friend of mine worked on restoring the airplane to its former glory and in 2007 flew it for the first time since it had left Japan. With careful work he was able to make it beautiful again. God can do the same for us. He takes us out of the airplane graveyard and cleans all the corrosion off, giving us new life in Him. We will always have a tendency to return to our natural state, but by careful inspection and cleaning we can prevent sin from destroying our lives. 

A necessary evil?

Coffee.

I always said I would never get into that life. I think that every time I have ventured out and done something different, people have told me that I would become a coffee drinker and that I wouldn't be able to survive without it. I held strong against the pressure and laughed in the face of fate and never became a coffee drinker. Because not only did coffee make me feel sick, it also tasted horrible. So why would I drop to that level? No, I was happy with my tea and my hot chocolate.

And then Aviation Maintenance happened. Now in our 9th week of school I have come to the decision that I will grow to enjoy coffee, love coffee, and will not be able to survive without coffee. I have come to the conclusion that in order to stay awake through four lectures within an eight hour period every day five days a week, coffee is a necessary evil.

Although I can't say that it will never happen (now that I have begun drinking coffee... I don't know what isn't possible) but I am not a coffee drinker, rather I simply drink coffee. Its a survival tactic that I have come to accept. And over the course of the next ten months in A&P school I expect to drink a lot of coffee and do a lot in the way of surviving. (as long as the coffee doesn't kill me first...)

Our identity is found in Him and Him alone.

He leads us down a path

           I decided to change the name of my blog from "Flying for Him" to "Living for Him" for one reason: it doesn't matter what we are 'do' for God, it matters if we live for God. He doesn't care what we do or how well we do it, rather He wants us to live in a way that brings glory to Him.
           I love flying, but being away from it for so long and seeing just how much I miss it has made me realize that instead of finding my identity in my flying I have to focus on what really matters: who I am in Christ. I know that I need to find my identity in Christ, but it is hard to change my focus from what I want to do for God to what God wants me to do for Him. I think I get so set in what I think of myself and of what I can do that I forget that God doesn't care what I am doing or where I am going just as long as I am living my life for Him. I have to begun to recognize what really matters in my life, what God is doing through me, not what I am doing for God. When we give everything up to Him, He is able to lead us where we have never imagined. It reminds me of the song "Oceans" by Hillsong. Asking God to lead me deeper than my feet would ever wander on my own, to a place where my faith will be made stronger in the presence of my Savior, In Proverbs 16:9 it says that a man's heart plans his way, but God directs his steps. We can plan all we want, but it is God who will lead us.
It is not about who we are or what we have done.
                  Our identity is found in Him and Him alone.