Complacency Kills

My Belief

As a pilot I know that complacency is one of the biggest safety concerns we have facing us. When you fly to same cities multiple times in a month, run the same checklists every day, and essentially do the same things over and over again things are bound to become a bit routine. Things can become so routine that normal safe procedures begin to be over looked. Many times guys have said the same checklist so many times that the have it memorized and start reciting it from memory. At times people have taxied or flown the same procedure so many times that the feel that referencing the charts are no longer needed. This can become dangerous and set pilots up for big mistakes. This type of behavior can result in missing an important step on a checklist or route. We discuss cases of this happening in recurrent training every year. There is a good diagram that depicts this behavior. It is 3 circles inside of one another. The smallest circle in the middle is the green safe zone where complacency is held at bay and safety is at its highest point. The middle ring is where the pilot has drifted away from safety into the amber colored caution ring. When he continues to get away with his complacent behavior it becomes “safe” in his mind. This has become his new normal and his future drifting will be from this point. The last ring is the red danger ring. The pilot has drifted from his deviant behavior to a point where a big mistake is now imminent and safety will be compromised.

These 3 rings apply perfectly to my walk with the Lord Jesus. My green middle ring is where I am walking closely with God. I am taking time each day to read the Word, pray, and worship God. As life becomes hectic I tend to drift to a point in the outer caution ring where I don’t read regularly and I give God a “quickie” prayer. I tell myself in my head at some point later in the day I will “get around” to God. It is almost inevitable that I will drift into the last danger ring with this type of behavior. I will drift into a ring where I don’t pray, and I don’t walk with God and I am set up for failure. A failure where I will SIN against my God. In doing so I am sure to hurt myself and the ones around me. This will be a painful process that could be avoided if I would just stay on the straight and narrow in the safe center ring.

Hopefully when pilots make mistakes they are not so big that there can not be a period of reprimand and retraining. This will root them firmly back in the green safe ring. God does the same thing with me when I fail. He humbles me and brings me to my knees. I have no where to go but the foot of the cross and ask for forgiveness. God has always been faithful to pick me up and dust me off. He brings me back into a safe “green circle” walk with him. Thank you God that you are Faithful even when I am not.

Scripture

James 4:8⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Matthew 7:14¹⁴ But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Application

I strive to be faithful to God. I want the Holy Spirit to continue leading me into better and better habits. Habits that will keep me out of dangerous sin and into a healthy walk with the Lord. I am trying to surround myself with Godly people who will help me stay firm in my walk so that I may be a powerful tool for the Lord. I think of so many people in the Bible like David and Samson who drifted into danger and paid a painful price. Lord please help me to stay in a safe walk with you.

A Call for Advice

My Belief

A good buddy of mine who also works for the airline recently called me for advice. He is a good "country" guy who is a conservative politically and a Christian in terms of his faith. The crew that he was working with was pretty much the extreme polar opposite of my friend. One in particular was an angry black man who was an atheist and a flaming homosexual. To say the combination between my friend and him were as oil and water would be a drastic understatement. This angry man learned along the course of the trip the beliefs of my friend and was inclined to let him "have it". He would say things like Christianity is the reason for slavery throughout history  and president Obama is the only "savior" the world really has. Needless to say this was killing my friend. He called me up and said, "what should I do with this guy?". He had tried debating with him a bit only to have the guy become more entrenched in his position.

My advice to my friend was to just be as friendly as possible to the guy. My friend did not like that answer very much. He said he called me for a real solution and that is all I have for him. The reason is this. Jesus did not call us debate and vigorously prove Him to everyone. He told us to LOVE and serve everyone. My friend had already shared his position of faith and the guy was not interested. So what else is there for him to do other than to be kind to the unkind and loving to the un-loveable. This was Jesus greatest command. To love the Lord your God with all of our heart and soul and mind and to love your neighbor as yourself. When one analyzes what Jesus was saying by the term "neighbor", he was talking about everyone on the planet .             He also said a soft answer turns away wrath, and to turn the other cheek. Peter said to be prepared to give an account of the hope that you have with gentleness and respect. All of this points to one thing. We are love and be love in a world that does not want love. This is why Jesus said that God is love and love has come into the world.

Scripture

Matthew 5:43-48

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor^[a] and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? ⁴⁸ Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 22:36-40

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

³⁷ Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^{[a] 38} This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^{[b] 40} All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Application

I made it my new years resolution to stop talking trash about people. I like to say things like the Cowboys suck, or a particular airline is horrible or the work groups in certain cities are awful etc... While most of this is just in jest it does not show love. It tears down and does not build up. I am praying and trying to change this in myself to conform to the will of Christ. I am going to try to even be kind to people who don't like me or people I have not liked in the past. I am going to try and be love to in everything just like Jesus is love to me. Even when I am just joking around.

I GOT MINE!

My Belief

Pilots are notoriously selfish people. Most of our lives are structured to make us just that. We work with thousands of other crewmembers that we may never see again causing us to have shallow friendships. We can aggressively manipulate our own schedules, sometimes to the detriment of a more junior pilot. In fact the quality of our careers is based entirely on our own individual seniority with an airline. This tends to create an "I got mine" attitude amongst many members of our ranks. If they are in a good position they simply don't care about any other colleague's that are not.

I sort of realize that at times I have caught myself having this same attitude about people who don't believe in Jesus. Most of the time I have a big heart toward people and I really genuinely hope and pray the will come into a saving knowledge of the gospel, but every now and then I catch myself in and evil thought. I imagine it may be a thought similar to what Jonah had when God told him to go preach in Nineveh. At times I have caught myself thinking "well forget 'em if they don't repent because I've got mine!" You know who I am talking about. The nasty person who hates everyone, or the entrenched atheist. I've had a momentary thought about the Mormon I have shared the true gospel with who is steadfast in his cult. 99% of the time I feel so sad that these people have a horrible fate awaiting them if they don't turn, but every now and then I think "whatever because I am saved by grace and so I've got mine".
This is a horrible thought and one I have to repent before the Lord for and conform to the Will of Christ. Think about what Jesus did! Even when he was nailed to the cross, He exclaimed "forgive them father for they know not what they do". This is powerful! Even when he was beaten and killed He loved the nastiest amount us. I will make it my mission to do the same. I will trap my wayward thoughts and conform them to the mind of Christ. I don't want anyone to ever suffer the fate that the Bible describes as hell. Help me Lord to love everyone the way you have Loved me.

Scripture

Luke 23:34

New International Version (NIV)

³⁴ Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”^[a] And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

Application

I am praying that I will make 99% become 100%! That I will seek the help of the Holt Spirit the continue the work he has begun in me. That there will be no wrong that I can not forgive and no person that I cannot love. Jesus died for all and I pray that all will hear and repent. The worst among us deserve the same awful fate in Hell that I deserve. Jesus has pardoned me with grace, and I will pray the same for everyone I meet.

Battlefield of the Mind

My Belief

You know what drives me crazy!!!? Stupid, jerk people that make my life harder. You know who I am talking about. I can’t stand the idiot that makes a left hand turn out of the right hand lane right in front of me! I can’t stand the dummy who gets on the moving sidewalk at the airport and stands there for a 1/4 MILE!!! How about a few more… The old lady doing 35mph in the left hand interstate express lane, the jerk at the post office who snaps at me because I don’t understand 20 different forms of mail, my friend with all his “backhanded” “friendly” comments or my coworker that knows how to do my job better than his own!!!!

Each one of these things causes me to have very negative thoughts toward each of these respective people. Some of them I want to give a piece of my mind, SOME I want to give and EVEN BIGGER piece, and some I would just like to ask to step outside for an old fashion lesson in “manners”! In each one of these cases the argument could be made that I am justified in my frustration and that if our PC society was not what it is, then I should have the right to lash out at these types of people. The problem is, that I am a Christian… While my earthly flesh wants to return evil for evil, my heavenly Father wants me to return GOOD for EVIL. This all starts with the battle in my mind. The first place I can show the love of Christ to all is in my mind. I have to win that battle over the evil in my head. I have to offer a smile to the post man, forgive my friend, and show compassion to the slow and weak. This is what Jesus did for me. I am slow and weak and a terrible sinner. He came and took all of the punishment that was JUSTIFIED for me. I can’t fight the “good fight” unless I can win the battle in my mind. I also have to take captive all sinful thoughts of lust and greed. We live in a provocative world that is design to stimulate the male sexuality. Also our culture is driven by career success and money. All of these things infect my mind at different times and I must capture and surround them in my head. Paul describes it best when he says he takes every evil thought captive and Jesus explains to indulge in this thinking is the same sin as the act itself.

Scripture

^{2 Cor 10}

⁵ We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

^{Matt 5}

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,^[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ ²² But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister^[b][c] will be subject to judgment.

²⁷ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’^{[e] 28} But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Application for Life

Jesus please help me win the war in my head so that I can show the love you have shown me to others. Help me lean on your Holy Spirit to continue to refine and purge my mind of all the garbage that I put in it from this World. You deserved none of the punishment you endured and yet you did it for me. Help me to offer love to those that wrong me, salvation to those that tempt me, and the hope of reward in heaven of which this world cannot compare. Help me to live in the mindset of Christ.

King Maker

My Belief

Donald Trump is always a loud, outspoken, front and center individual, but last night while I was watching the news, something caught my attention. It also made me reflect a little on my own self interested political position. Trump is currently trying to put together his own GOP debate that he would personally moderate. This would put him in a position to have some influence on who may eventually gain the GOP nomination. I also got to thinking about the way most of the GOP candidate have taken time out of their schedules to visit with the Donald. Most of them believe it will put them in a good position with a voting block of America and give them access to additional funds from Trump. This “courting” has become so overtly obvious that the media has begun calling “The Donald” the GOP “King Maker”. It is the idea that by gaining approval from Donald, the potential candidate will be put in a position to be nominated as the Republican Candidate and then be elected to the Presidency. In the past several other prominent political figures have been touted as “King Makers” too. This list includes Sarah Palin, Rudy Giuliani, and Chris Christie.   

While I listened to this back and forth on the news about which GOP candidate will be the nominee and if Donald Trump will be a deciding factor, I remembered a passage of scripture. A passage that says that God is in control of everything. That God understands and orchestrates global politics. As much as I think America is on the wrong course and Barrack Obama is accelerating that downfall, God is still in control. Obama is The President because God has put him there. Whether or not he is re-elected or replaced by another is all according to God’s plan. I have to remember that my own interest for the country to return to a God fearing nation with Biblical conservative ideals, is not necessarily what will happen. The Bible is clear about what the world will look like before the return of Jesus even if it is not the ideal situation I would like. God places who He wants in power and directs the heart of that man according to His will. God sets up and tears down kings, and one day He will set up the most powerful, and most noble King of all.

Scripture

Dan 2:21 ²¹ He changes times and seasons;
   he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
   and knowledge to the discerning.

Romans 13:1 ¹ Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God

Application for Life

I was hard core on the “Cain Train” before he imploded. I am on and off again with the flip-flopping opportunist GOP candidates that come and go. My selfish desire is to find a great candidate that will restore America so I can live in the type of society that I wish. This is not right. I am going to attempt to change my thoughts to the will of God. God will place who he wants in power, and I will try to live a consistent Christian life regardless of that person. My joy is in the fact that I know one day God will put Jesus in charge of everything and he will be the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Donald Trump is NOT really a king maker and neither is anyone else. God is the real King Maker and I am going to try and keep that in mind as this political season shifts into high gear!

Tim Tebow is UGLY!!!

My belief

I have not been following Tim Tebow as long as most people, because I am more of an NFL guy than a college guy. My dad however is huge Tebow and Florida Gators fan. Now that Tebow is in the NFL for the Denver Broncos, I have been paying a lot more attention to him. Even more than paying attention to Tim, I have paid attention to all the “media hype” about Tim. They are ruthless toward Tim Tebow. They say his throwing motion is to slow. He will never make it the NFL. He should become a running back or something because he is not made for the position of NFL Quarterback. As harsh as they are about his football ability they are TEN TIMES more harsh about his FAITH!!! Tim Tebow is a HARDCORE believer in Jesus Christ. He is more bold for God than I could ever hope to be. He prays on the field. He evangelizes others on his teams. He even writes Bible verses in his facial eye black before games. I love to watch the NFL and when I miss the games I catch all the recaps on ESPN sports center. In doing so, I have to admit that Tim’s performances have been UGLY!!! His passes don’t look sharp. He gets hit by defenders because his release is slow and the guy seems to always want to RUN the ball instead of throwing it! Despite this, under his leadership the Broncos are now 5 wins and 1 loss. Tebow keeps on coming up with just enough to win. Big plays at the end of the game for a big score. I LOVE THIS!!!

Here is a man of faith that loves the Lord and has been given the chance to play in the NFL. He uses his opportunity to speak about Jesus with no reservations. He does not look and perform sharp like Aaron Rodgers, Payton Manning, or Tom Brady, but he continues to succeed. This is beautiful! I love it when the Lord takes a humble faithful servant to pronounce His own Glory. Tebow’s play is ugly because God wants everyone to know his success is from his faith in Jesus not his own ability. In this way God uses Tim to bring Glory to Himself. As a QB Tim looks ugly, but as a believer in Christ the entire package becomes AMAZING!

Scripture

1 Cor 26-31

²⁶ Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. ²⁸ God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, ²⁹ so that no one may boast before him. ³⁰ It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. ³¹ Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”

Application for Life

I pray and strive to be as bold in my faith as Tim Tebow. I hope God is able to use me to point to Himself. God always picks a loser to do his work because it shows that none of the glory is due to that person, but rather to the God behind the person. Thank you God for another beautiful example of how you operate. May I become as faithful of an ugly servant, just like Tim Tebow!

Before you do that…

My Belief

Being a First Officer (copilot) for a major airline is an important job. You must be just as proficient as the Captain in the event that something were to happen and he became incapacitated. In the last year alone I remember a time where a heavy jet liner coming back from Europe to the USA was landed by the First Officer alone. The Captain had a major heart attack and did not make it. Even as important as the First Officers job is, there is usually only one thing on his mind…… becoming the Captain.

I learned a lot of valuable lesson when I became a Captain. Training is a fast paced experience where the airline assumes you have gained the knowledge and experience to take command of a an aircraft. While I was in training I thought up a phrase that I would keep in head at all time. I continue to this day to utilize this phrase in all my decision making. The phrase is “before you do that…” Everything has a prerequisite before you do it. I will give you a few examples: Before you can turn the switches required to power up and aircraft you have to check the quality of the power available, before passengers board an aircraft the emergency oxygen has to be sufficient, before the main cabin door can be closed all fueling must be completed as a precaution against fire, and before each sequence of events happens the appropriate checklist must be run. In the event of any kind of inflight emergency even the most novice of pilots knows before any action can be taken they must ensure they have control of the aircraft first. This list can go on forever and applies to anything and everything.

This principle even applies to my walk as a believer in Jesus Christ. I believe we all get this principle wrong when it comes to the decisions we make in our lives.  We make decisions about buying cars, buying homes, taking jobs, marrying people, etc… without first accomplishing the prerequisite. As Christians, the prerequisite for everything we do in life is to first saturate that thing in prayer. Most of the time in my past I have done this in reverse. I go for it first and then I pray about it. I buy the house and then I pray, “oh God please let this work and please let me afford this”. If I am to live a Godly life and the life that the Lord wants for me I must first pray diligently before the throne of grace and then choose my path. God will honor this and guide my footsteps in everything I do.

Scripture

James 4:13-17

¹³ Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” ¹⁴ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. ¹⁷ If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

Application for life

Based on the Bible, prayer is our number one tool in this life. Billy Graham was recently asked by a reporter what he would have done differently in his life and he said, “I would have prayed more”. In recent years I have made it a discipline of my life  to seek God before I set out on anything. I will pray in the name of the Lord Jesus for my will to be conformed to God’s will. That he would use me in any decisions I make in this life.