How to Deal With Life's Malfunctions

On July 16, 2007 I stepped out the door of an in-flight airplane for the first time in my life. As soon as the status light turned green and I launched myself out the rear side door of the plane, I knew that I had entered into an adventure both exciting and scary. I felt the rush of two-hundred mile-per-hour winds pushing against my body sending me twisting and turning through the air.

My first jump was my worst. I had a poor body position on my first exit which resulted in a parachute malfunction. Although my parachute deployed, my lines were twisted and the canopy wasn't fully expanded. I was headed toward the ground faster than the soldiers around me.

My first thought was that I was going to die on my first jump. That thought quickly disappeared, however, as my training kicked in. I remembered being drilled and prepped repeatedly for this moment. Since day one, we had studied corrective procedures for partial and full malfunctions. This was only a minor malfunction. I knew what to do to save myself from injury. This was nothing that I couldn't handle. It was nothing that I had not been equipped to deal with.

I twisted my legs and pulled apart on the risers. I kicked and spun and after about ten seconds my parachute was fully deployed. As lightweight as I was, I began to descend much slower than my fellow soldiers and was actually one of the last to land. The rest of my jumps have all been smooth rides and soft landings.

I learned an important lesson at airborne school. The Army puts a lot of effort into making sure that soldiers are equipped and trained to deal with the hazards that they face. More than that, God will never allow us to enter into a situation that He will not enable and equip us to deal with successfully.

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. ~ I Corinthians 10:13

He won't ask you to jump out of an airplane until He has trained and equipped you to land successfully. He has given us his Word for training. His has given us a church for fellowship with godly friends. He really has given us everything that we need to be a successful Christian.

There is no way that we can place the blame for our failures on Christ. He has provided us with everything, including access to God himself, so that we can do what is right, accomplish God's will, stand true in the face of persecution, reach souls for Christ, and stay pure in a world of filth.

The next time you face a difficulty and you have trouble figuring out how to move forward, stop for a moment and remember your training. Remember the scripture passages that you have the taken the time to remember. Remember the sermon truths that you have learned over the years. Remember the lessons that you have learned from the Word of God and take control of the situation. Face your difficulty head on and with a strong reliance on God, tackle it!


In Christ,

Nick