I noticed this quote on another thread (If God is your co-pilot....) & it got me to thinking.
Is God REALLY your pilot?
What does the pilot do? He flies the plane, determines the direction, speed, and elevation that it will fly.
What does the navigator do? He calculates the best altitude to avoid weather problems (within guidelines, of course), the best compass heading to avoid the wind driving the plane off course, the best speed to maximize fuel efficiency, in general all the parameters that govern the safe and efficient operation of the plane.
The pilot, however, can refuse to follow the navigator’s instructions and put the plane in jeopardy. The navigator has the instruments to make the required calculations, but it is the pilot must follow the navigator’s directions if the flight is to be a safe and profitable one.
I therefore submit that we, as individuals ARE the pilot, and the Holy Spirit is the navigator.
We control the direction we take and how fast and straight we travel along the way.
If we are tuned to the Holy Spirit, we will constantly be receiving instructions as to needed corrections, BUT, and this is a big BUT, we decide whether to obey that corrective word or no. Just like the navigator, the Holy Spirit directs, advises, warns, leads, but just like the pilot, we must choose whether to obey or no!
So while it does sounds very "Christian" to claim that God is our PILOT, I just do not believe it. Many times I wish it were so, when the path is extremely unclear and rough, but when we put our trust in HIM, He’ll get us through.
I believe that He may sometimes tweak our handling of the vehicle a bit if we are trusting Him, but get too close to a disaster, but for the most part it’s up to us to do the flying/driving/living while listening for that “still small voice” of loving correction!
