Update and Silence

An interesting 24 hours. That's all I have to say.

Okay, maybe not. Actually, it wasn't that interesting, just a lot of good things.

Yesterday, on Friday, I went to do some more flying. The last 3 times I have gone, all we have done is takeoffs and landings, which is great because those two things are kind of important. Anyway, last night, we did 3 takeoffs and landings. After the third one, my instructor told me to taxi back to the hanger. I knew what was coming... and I was excited.

Well, we got back there and he opened the door.
"All right, now go and fly 3 touch and gos by yourself."

With that, I taxied back to the runway, took off and flew alone for the first time. It was great! I flew the Cessna 150 around the traffic pattern, lined up with the runway and made a perfect landing... 4 times. It truly was a blessed night!

As for today, I slept in, made a table, started another project until the belt sander broke with no parts to fix it, switched my fishing rods back for summer fishing and then went out and used them. All in all, a good day.

I've been thinking about many things, as usual. One of them has been silence. We live in a world of noise. Even as I sit by the computer, the dryer is tumbling upstairs, the fan in the computer hums softly and my fingers press the keys down, but besides that, I hear no sound. Even that, to most people, is too quiet. How often do we have music on or the tv? Honestly, when was the last time you sat in a place where no sound could be heard?

"Is there such a place?" I can hear many people say.

We are conditioned, in our culture, to hate silence. If the silent prayer goes too long before the organ plays "Lord, Listen to you children praying" people start rustling around and a choir of coughs comense. If we are home alone, the radio is always on or the tv, even though we may not be listening or watching. We are conditioned to hate silence.

Silence is a scary place. In this place, our own minds speak louder than we ever could imagine. We visit every conversation and every thought from the day. We think about our problems and are forced to interact with our emotions. In silence, we truly see or hear who we are.

I have been thinking how a lack of silence affects our Christian walk with each other and God Almighty. Some wonder why we don't feel God and why we don't hear his voice and why we don't see people do mighty things in the name of Jesus. I think, much of it comes down to silence. We don't take the time to quiet our minds and our hearts to hear God's voice. We are too scared to enter that space for fear of what my own mind might convict me of and also what God might say to me.

The story of Elijah on Mt. Sinai is the most striking example. There was wind, an earthquake and fire but the Lord was in none of them. "And after the fire came a gentle whisper...Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (1 Kings 19:12-13).

Stories of silence are everywhere in scripture, but the ones that strike me most are the ones involving Jesus. How many times do the gospels tell us that Jesus went to a place of solitude to pray, or, he got up before the sunrise to go out and pray. My favorite example of this is in Luke 6:12. Read it sometime. Jesus, the Son of God Most High, goes out by himself, and prays all night... not a 5 minutes or 1 minute... but all night! This entire night of prayer is focused on who he should choose as apostles. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, stayed up all night praying about a decision he had to make! He spent hours in silence and meditation seeking the guidance of God, his Father.

What am I missing out on by cheating myself of the time of silence? What is God waiting to say to me, if only I take the time and listen?

With warm weather, melting snow and a short drizzle of rain yesterday, the grass is gaining a green-ish tint to it. Signs of spring are in the air and it is wonderful. At work, we have been shingling or on the roof for almost 2 weeks. This has it's pros and cons. The pros are we are getting the shingling done before it is 90 degrees. The cons are, well, we are on the roof. Waking up this morning, my body definitely told me what we have been doing.

This past weekend we celebrated Easter and quite often, when reading the stories of the Bible, my eyes fly through them and I don't stop and visualize what is going on. Other books use language to describe the look on someone's face or to describe the scene around them, but the Bible is a story book that doesn't give all those details. We are given the basics. This almost creates, in me, a sense of disconnectedness. It doesn't seem real. Yet, at other times, the story becomes more real than I ever could have imagined.

I've included the lyrics of a song our choir sang recently. It is one of my favorite songs and it helped me visualize the story of Jesus this Easter.

Oh, to see the dawn of the darkest day.
Christ on the road to Calvary.
Tried by sinful men,
torn and beaten then,
nailed to a cross of wood.

This the power of cross.
Christ became sin for us.
He took the blame, bore the wrath.
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Oh, to see the pain written on your face.
Bearing the awesome weight of all my sins.
Every bitter thought. Every evil deed.
Crowning your blood stained brow.

This the power of cross!
Christ became sin for us!
He took the blame and bore the wrath.
We stand forgiven at the cross!

Now the daylight flees, now the ground beneath,
quakes as it's maker bows his head.
Curtain torn in two, dead are raised to life.
Finished! The victory cry!

This the power of the cross!
Christ became sin for us!
He took the blame and bore the wrath!
We stand forgiven at the cross!

Oh to see my name written in the wounds.
For through your suffering, I am free!
Death is crushed to death!
Life is my to live!
Born through your selfless love!

This the power of the cross!
Son of God, slain for us!
What a plan, what a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross!

I'm finding that I don't have a lot to write about. Usually I am thinking about stuff all day, but when I get home, I don't think about sharing my thoughts. They stay in my head. As for events going on in my life, well, there really isn't a whole lot happening. I am doing carpentry 5 days a week and flying as much as possible.

Actually, right now, I have been looking at and thinking about going to flight school this fall. My whole life, I had been enthralled with flying but have never pursued it until a couple months ago. Mission Aviation is something I'm looking at and so, I'm exploring my options with how to pursue that better. Moody Bible Institute in Spokane, WA is an option, but there are a few others around the country.

Who knows what will happen.