In 2008 and airliner took off from La Guardia Airport in New York. As it was on climb out, a few thousand feet of altitude, it ran through a flock of geese. Both engines failed. The airplane was completely without power and had become a glider. Jet aircraft are not designed to be gliders. They need a lot of thrust and airspeed to fly. Without power, the plane will soon “contact” the ground.
The pilot had to go through probably hundred decision in the few minutes had remaining airborne such thing as trying to restart the engines. Without the engines he didn’t have hydraulic power for the controls so they started the auxiliary power all the time they are descending. Part of the situational study is “is there a safe place to put the plane on the ground with the best survival outcome for people on the plane and on the ground.
All airports are too far away. Trying to make it to another airport he would likely fall short, hitting buildings, killing not only the passengers aboard but a lot of people on the ground. They had to maneuver around building bridges and finally come to collusion the only safe spot was the Hudson River. They executed a controlled forced landing on the Hudson River.
They evacuated the passengers of the airplane onto boats that came to their aid.
This became known as the miracle of the Hudson.
Was it a miracle?
I, Alex, am a pilot myself. We are trained and drilled not just to get an airplane into the air then back onto the ground. We are trained to handle emergencies such as fires, engine failures, etc.
Sully Sullenberger, who was captain on the “miracle on the Hudson” did not have time look up in a flight manual to figure out what had to be done. It was all in his head. He had trained for decades for such a moment as this.
Instead of having to think through what to I do now, Sully knew all the steps to go through. He evaluated all the options and make the best decision based on all the situation parameters. He and his copilot were able to evaluate quickly and execute their plan.
Is this a miracle? I don’t think it’s so much miracle but more of a person who has made their decades long career immersed in all the emergency procedures. Whatever came his way, he was ready for it.
In the same way, as we walk with Christ in our Christian life too many Christians have not been taking their Christian training seriously.
Some pilots, upon receiving their license think they know it all. These are dangerous pilots. The best pilots always keep training to be the most proficient possible you never know when that “hour” might come.
In the same way Christians need to study the Scriptures, be in prayer with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. We learn and grow in Godly wisdom. Christians need to keep developing by being in contact with their mentor (instructor / examiner for a pilot) always examining ourselves for growth Godly ways.
So, when in the life of a Christian who did not work diligently to maintain further proficiency, when a disaster hits, that person will likely falter.
Those Christians that have continually strived to be in Christian principles, Godly ways, and abiding in Jesus, those are the most likely to handle the storm.
Their training is stored in their heart and head. While in the midst of a disaster, no need to re-view through the operation/flight manual. We all need to continually work on our spiritual growth.
I remember a story about a pastor and one of his parishioners getting into a theological argument. The parishioner, in his senior years, retorted to the pastor “I’ve been a Christian for over 50 years”. The pastor responded, you have been a new Christian for over 50 years. Without going into judgement as to who was right or wrong in their debate but it is important for us to examine ourselves with the help of wise spiritual counseling. Am I really growing in my spiritual walk.
I think there are very many Christians who have found themselves in a comfortable place, think they are okay, and therefore not growing. They are stagnating. So we pray that all of us clearly see the face of God. That we diligently and on a daily basis strive always know God and be closer to Him then we were yesterday.