Let Go of The Plane
My white knuckled grip was so fierce, I am surprised I did not claw a hole in the plane. Okay, that is an exaggeration, but only a little.
Our kids were still kids and we were headed to the Rocky Mountains with family friends. I was not-so-secretly afraid of flying and tried to appear calm, cool, and collected. I probably came across more like a frazzled crispy cat caught in an electrical current with burnt hairs sticking out every which way. (Sorry, cat lovers. I am humane. It is just a description that comes to mind.)
I have no idea how long we were in the air. I do know we had (obviously) survived takeoff. Somewhere… up there… way up there… came the infamous words of my husband shouting in my left ear. Let go of the plane! He had to shout it again, because I was confused. (Remember… I was still crispy at this point.) Mary! Let go of the plane! He reached over and pointed to my right hand that was, fortunately, shoved under the window and not through the window. That would have been a bummer!
My claws were stuck to the handrail because, deep inside, I had an illusion that my physical grip was helping to hold the plane up 🙀 I had somehow become responsible for keeping the entire aircraft safely in flight. Logic made no sense. Through strained effort, I was finally able to release my hold one finger at a time.
The most amazing thing happened when I got free. It might shock you as it still does me. The airplane kept flying! Without my help. Without my holding on. Without my agonizing. We arrived safely to our destination. What a relief!
As much as this memory still makes my hair stick out every which way, it became a great illustration of a verse I discovered a few years later.
Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10a
I am not a teacher of the word and will not pretend to be. I am just me. I do, however, have easy study apps and a Strongs Concordance. I encourage you to do your own in-depth word study and see for yourself if what I say is true.
The words, Be still, in Psalm 46:10 mean: Relax your grip. Let go.
How on earth did I get the unconscious harebrained idea that I was responsible to hold the plane up? I do not know. Yet I still struggle in similar ways when; the load is heavy, unknowns are unclear, and fear confronts. I strain with human limitation, but now I can also become still by relaxing my grip and entrusting my cares into the loving hands of The One Who Was, The One Who Is, and The One Who Always Will Be God.
Oh, what a glorious relief!
“Be still and know that I am God.”