Envy

The other day I wrote that I had attended church in the morning and then again that evening. Someone read those words and thought “I wish I could be so close to God.” What childish reasoning! You read one sentence, out of a larger context, and focused on that one good point and thought: “Blessed is he; woe is me.” Rather than meditating on the words I wrote – in total – and asking God “What does this mean for me,” instead you looked to reinforce your own misery, and justify your sadness. You envied the consolation of another, and missed the point of the consolation, for it was not given to signify any holiness. You missed the whole point, the WHOLE point. Never envy another for where they are, or what they have; you do not know what it cost them to get there; and you do not know that they may lose it tomorrow.

In recent days I wrote some and hopefully you thought some on the wholeness and beauty of life. Much earlier I wrote four posts which described the journey of life, the road we travel. If you recall, although we are all different and at different points on that journey, there are a few key points which are common to all our journeys. First and foremost, we have the common idea, thought of in differing ways but still in common, of our destination. One way or another, we are all trying to reach heaven as we know it; I wrote of it as an analogy about a trip on the Road to San Jose. A second and equally important point is that we are not traveling alone. No matter what you feel about your life’s journey right now, I pray most fervently that if you get nothing else out of these musings, that you learn and put deep into your heart that key fact: You Are Not Alone. When I accepted that one fact, my life’s journey became much easier, and much more enjoyable.

Let’s try another parable about our life’s journey: I am the plane that has landed at the airport and is taxiing to the terminal; and some of you may look at that and think a safe journey is ending – and you’d be wrong. I’ve read many stories of pilots taxiing on the runway who, distracted, got lost; some others hit other planes or drove into the path of other planes – and people died, even sometimes the pilot. And I’ve read of pilots ending their flights and finding out they’ve landed at the wrong airport. Don’t look at me, the plane on the ground, with the envy of a completed safe journey; the trip is not over until everyone safely reaches the destination. Just being on the ground is not it; even a crashing plane gets to that point.

And for those, perhaps you, who are flying through storm clouds right now, worried about any passengers in your care, worried that your old plane might not hold together long enough, worried you might be lost – I remind you that you have a co-pilot who has made this trip safely many times in the past. Even if you lack confidence in your abilities, you must trust in His. You are not alone.

Finally, I recall and am encouraged by the words of the CEO to whom we trusted my former company. He said that we were in a tailspin and heading down, and things will be getting even more scary than now – a thought which seemed inconceivable – but, he said, from this point on we will take control of this dive. We’ll check the engines, the fuel level, and even the structure of the plane, so that when we pull up out of this dive, and we will, our plane can withstand the stress. And then, when we start up again, the rise will be glorious and the trip much smoother. That CEO seems to have delivered on his promise, and I’m glad for all the employees who stuck around and followed his lead.

But make no mistake, this huge company is nothing in importance compared to the importance of YOU, and your life. This CEO utilized his human experiences, knowledge and wisdom very well, but his is as a gnat compared to the wisdom and talent of your CEO, your co-pilot, your God. If your life seems to be tail-spinning down, don’t look with envy at others further along in the journey; don’t put your head down and say: “Woe is me.” Look over to that experienced co-pilot you have and ask: “Well, what should I do now?” Have confidence in His directions, or if you are too weak, get out of way and let Him take control.

You’re just going through a rough storm; we all do. And if you look with envy at me taxiing down the runway, seemingly closer to home than you, it is because you do not see the chaos inside my plane from all the storms I passed through, and you do not see the imprints of my fingers on the steering wheel where I grabbed it so hard. And you do not see me looking anxiously this way and that, for my journey is not yet over.

Have faith, my friends, we’re going to the same destination. The landing runway may seem extremely narrow to you right now, but that’s just because you’re still so far away. Hang on, calm down, take control. And remember, of all the fatal plane crashes I’ve ever read about, virtually every one was caused by pilot error, by a pilot who said “No problem, I can handle this --- alone.” No matter how bad things seem right now, you are not alone. If you feel like you’re in a dive right now, don’t be afraid to turn the controls over to your experienced co-pilot. I know he’ll pull you up and bring you to a safe landing.

He did me.

And remember our thoughts about beauty, and how every life has good and bad things happen in it, and it all works together to create the beauty of creation. And this beauty and harmony in your life is very important to all of creation, an importance recognized long ago:
If there is harmony in the heart, there will be harmony in the family.
If there is harmony in the family, there will be harmony in the nation.
If there is harmony in the nation, there will be harmony in the world.
- Confucius