He was definitely afraid. There was no denying it.
In fact, he was so afraid that he was crying. He seemed to have lost it and was loudly declaring how this was not what he wanted. This wasn’t what he had signed up for. It was all going to go bad very quickly and he wanted out.
I couldn’t help but overhear everything he was saying. I couldn’t see him, but he was certainly distraught. The whole front of the airplane knew of his plight. We couldn’t see him, but he was coming through loud and clear.
And we hadn’t even taken off yet. This was going to be a long flight…
Thankfully there was someone trying to calm him down; doing their best to console him and help him understand everything was going to be alright. There was no need for him to be afraid. Apparently this was not the first time he had flown, but somehow he had lost his nerve this time.
Carefully, lovingly, graciously his mother was able to calm him down. She was able to talk him off the ledge and help him understand this was not something to be feared, but to be celebrated. This was a grand adventure we were about to embark upon. Thankfully her young son responded to her soothing words, calmed down and settled in for what he now hoped was a grand adventure.
He began to chatter excitedly about how the plane was moving along the taxi-way heading out to the runway. As the plane accelerated down the runway he grew in excitement and anticipation of that special moment: you know, that miraculous moment when thousands of pounds of steel overcomes the limitations of gravity and begins to fly.
His loud, childlike declaration broke through the mundane monotony of yet another flight at the precise moment we all felt the force of the plane pulling up into the wild blue yonder…
“Wowee – we’re flying!!!!!”, he shouted at the top of his lungs!
His adrenalized exclamation awoke something in me. Yes, you are right, wowee – we are flying! This is indeed awesome!
Is it not incredible that a mass of metal weighing over 70,000 pounds, more than 100 feet long with a wing span of 112 feet can hurl through the sky at over 900 kilometers per hour with 150 passengers aboard?! You bet it is!
In fact, most of the everyday conveniences we take for granted are awesome: electricity, indoor plumbing, smart phones, automobiles, computers, refrigeration… it’s all awesome. But somehow we seem to have lost a sense of awe. We have lost the wonder and the wow in everyday life.
And how much more awesome is it that the Creator of all that was, is and shall be has chosen to bestow upon us His love and life? He has chosen to set us free from the bullying of the enemy of our soul and adopt us into His family as His beloved children – how awesome is that? The commander of angel armies calls you friend! Awesome!
We need to ask the Lord to help us get our wonder and wow back.
You know what the opposite of awe is? Apathy. Our God is an awesome God. And His creation is awesome as well. We can live in a continual state of awe. Sadly though, all over the world people are asleep, but for the few who are awake they live a constant state of awe – they live in wonder and wow!
I think part of having a child-like faith is expressing awe at a deep heart level: “Wowee – we’re flying!”
Wow – I’m loved! Wow – I’m forgiven! Wow – I’m not alone! Wow – my God delights in me! Wow – my God provides for all my needs! Wow – I have victory over the enemy in Jesus’ name! Wow – the Risen Lord of Glory calls me friend! Wow – the God of all creation calls me His beloved son!
Wow and wonder cannot help but lead us to gratitude. And what is wow, wonder and gratitude if not worship?
Our God is definitely an awesome God! Let’s worship Him in wow and wonder every day!
Psalm 65:8
“The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.”
Habakkuk 3:2
“Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.”
Psalm 119:120
“My flesh trembles in fear of you; I stand in awe of your laws.”
Hebrews 12:28, 29
“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire.’”