Tuesday, January 3, 2012

A Message for You!!

Some years ago my wife arranged for us to ride in a hot-air balloon as a birthday gift. We went to the field where balloons ascended and got into a little basket with another couple. We introduced ourselves and swapped vocational information. Then the pilot began the ascent. The day had just dawned-clear,crisp and cloudless. We could see the entire Canejo Valley,from Craggy canyons to the Pacific ocean. It was scenic, inspiring and majestic. But i also experienced one emotion i had not anticipated. Want to guess? FEAR.

I had always thought those baskets went chest high, but this one only came up to our knees. One good lurch would be enough to throw someone over the side. So I held on with grim determination and white knuckles... About this time I decided I'd like to know the kid who was flying this balloon. I realized that I could psyche myself up into believing everything would be fine, but the truth was we had placed our lives and destinies in the hands of the pilot. Everything depended on his character and competence...

I knew we were in trouble when his response to me began,"Dude, it's like this.." He did not even have a job! He mostly surfed. He said the reason he got started flying hot-air balloons was that he had been driving around in his pick up when he'd had too much to drink, crashed the truck and badly injured his brother. His brother still couldn't get around too well, so watching hot-air balloons gave him something to do... The giant question at a moment like that is "Can I trust the pilot?"

Everyday you and I take another leg of our journey in this giant balloon that's whirling around this vast universe. We'll get only one trip. I long to take it with an enormous spirit of adventure and risk-and I'll bet you do too. But it's a pretty uncertain ride sometimes. I wish the walls of my basket went a little higher. I wish the balloon was a little thicker. I wonder how the ride will end up. I'm not sure how it will handle the way down... My story, like every human story, is, at least in part, the struggle between faith and fear.

**Now, we have a trustworthy pilot. Yes, things will be rough at some point or the other during the ride, but we go through all these to make us stronger and better. So this coming year, don't run from hard times. Do away with fear. Look at them as stepping stones to greatness. Enjoy the ride, you only get one! Happy New Year people!!! Three cheers for the best Pilot in the world!

by:John Ortberg(provided by Lydia)

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