Leap of Faith

Why was I jumping out of a perfectly good airplane? My bucket List, of course. I had always wanted to sky dive and didn't want to be as old as Bush 41 when I did it.

My life was in the hands of a complete stranger. Oh yes, I met him just minutes before being strapped together with him to jump out of an airplane. So how did I come to grips with it?

• Research had been done to ensure that I was going to the best facility with quality and qualified people who would be in charge. The reputation was there. Check.

• Another factor was having people with me for support and encouragement. Check.

Upon meeting my instructor, Mike, there was a tinge of disappointment. The others were young and fit, mine was older and not as fit, but he quickly won me over by trying to scare me. I didn't budge in my dedication to take the leap, but came right back with rebuttals to his comments. That seemed to be the turning point and he decided to make it the event of a lifetime for me.

As the conversation ensued I discovered that by the end of the day Mike would have made over 13,500 jumps. He carefully explained the equipment, and described exactly what would happen step by step. From the way the straps were made to the details of the plane he made my confidence grow. On the Tarmac he was a gentleman, protecting me from the tremendous winds from the propellers.

On the tiny plane, we were packed in like sardines--one pilot, 4 photographers, 4 instructors and 4 crazy people, me included. My instructor continued putting me at ease when we hit turbulence by telling me that we were the safest plane in the air because everyone had on parachutes. He didn't want me to miss out on any details so he pointed out many of the landmarks out the window as we climbed higher and higher until we were at about 13,000 feet above sea level or about 8,000 feet above the mile-high city of Denver. 

It was now time to jump. I had been instructed to squat, cross my heart (but not to hope to die--I hope you get it) and wait to be "pushed out" by him. And we were off, but it didn't seem like we were falling to the earth. I just felt like we were suspended in midair able to see the curvature of the horizon being parallel to the peaks around us and viewing the sun beaming through the clouds which produced snow and rain off in the distance.

We saw the Guitar Lake, Long's Peak, the local high school and surrounding towns. We twisted and turned, but something wasn't exactly as my partner expected. We weren't descending due to the updraft and then we hit turbulence and began bouncing through the atmosphere dangling by the thin cloth parachute. Our plane had already landed and several of the others who had jumped with us had reached the earth, but we were still at 4,000 feet. 

Drastic measures had to be taken, so my partner tried distracting me from looking down and had me gaze up at the orange and blue chute that is used when parachutes land at the Bronco's Stadium. I later realized that as we were twirling to get to the ground you didn't notice it as much when you were looking up at something that was going the same direction that you are traveling.

Finally,....feet on the ground, I felt like my jumping partner and I were old friends, not strangers as when we had begun. I had placed my trust in him and his experience and had fulfilled a dream of a lifetime.

And of course, I must relate this to God. 

When we first come to the Lord. He is a stranger of sorts. As we get to know Him, through reading the Bible, hearing sermons, spending time with others who know Him, we begin to build the relationship and trust in Him. At some point, we choose to attach ourselves to Him and allow Him to control our lives and help us to reach new heights, discover new things, going where He wants us to go, doing what He wants. There will be turbulence around the way, but we know we can trust Him with our lives. If we try to go our own way, He may tighten the connection so we don't stray too far. God carefully explains truth to us, so we can be comfortable on the journey. And then when the journey is over, He brings us safely home where we discover that we have become close friends.

If I can trust a complete stranger, I can certainly trust my Father who loves me and has a perfect plan and purpose for me, so Ready, Set, Let’s Go Lord!

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your ways.