“He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.” (Psalm 91:4)
How could I make a plane crash?
That was the question I pondered as I worked on research for my novel about a Russian test pilot flying a MiG-9 fighter jet. I have limited experience around planes, so I asked my pilot son for his advice. Here’s how the conversation went:
- Me: “What if I needed the plane to crash? Could I have something fall off it?”
- Alex: “Yeah, that would work.”
- Me: “What about a wing?”
- Alex: “That would do it.”
- Me: “You can’t fly a plane on only one wing?”
- Alex: “Uh, no. That’s not aerodynamically possible.”
- Me: “Are you sure?”
- Alex: Sigh. “Yes…but wings don’t typically just fall off.”
I had to trust my son’s training and come up with another malfunction for the plane wreck. It seems you can’t coast into a “crash” landing after a wing falls off…the plane just goes straight down. And more importantly, you can’t take off with a missing wing either.
Broken wings make flight impossible. So do broken hearts.
A lot has been said and documented about the rising generation and the mental health issues they’ve developed, perhaps partly due to the COVID pandemic.
They’re worried about day-to-day workloads and expectations. Their energy levels are depleted. They despair that their lives are not as rosy as others’ images on social media. They struggle to rise—only to be met with reduced job opportunities, a high cost of living, and no way forward.
Guess what? These pressures aren’t limited to younger generations. We’re all broken in some way.
As my son said, you can’t get off the ground with broken wings. Yet we keep trying…unsuccessfully.
Scripture has a lot to say about how we should work hard, remain faithful, strive for goals, follow God’s commandments, and persevere. Those honorable aspirations become heavy burdens, though, when you’re barely holding things together, limping along, or sagging from lack of energy and hope.
Is it possible to be healed after you’ve been torn apart or beaten down? To get your brokenness fixed?
The answer is yes…but you can’t do it yourself. That’s like asking a bird to fix its own wing. Or asking a dead man to wake up. Healing is a job that belongs to Jesus Christ alone.
Jesus spent much of his earthly ministry taking care of the physical needs of people around Him. He healed the lame and blind, cured diseases, and released people from despair. He brought dead people back to life.
Jesus also restored people to mental health. He restored wholeness and cured the mental anguish of the woman who had bled for years. He drove out demons that tormented a man who lived naked among tombs. He cured a son afflicted by seizures and gave life back to a daughter who had died.
Our Lord was no stranger to anxiety Himself. On the night before His crucifixion, His own grief over the suffering (and sin burden) He was about to endure caused Him to sweat drops of blood. He faced His sacrifice anyway, and, as our Great High Priest, paid the ultimate sacrifice to bring us the restoration we need.
He is still our Healer/Redeemer, yet we too often forget this aspect of His power over the everyday anxieties that plague us. We fail to ask Him for His healing peace.
Isaiah’s prophetic declarations about Christ remain timely today for our young (and old) people:“Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:30-31)
Aren’t these wonderful promises for everyone afflicted with a broken heart and broken wings? As our Guard and Guide, Jesus covers us with His all-powerful wings, allowing us to rise on His grace.
We need to remind ourselves daily that our strength is found in trusting Christ. He alone provides the lift we need to get off the ground. Only He can launch us above the anxieties of this world.
If you’re feeling grounded this week and unable to lift your head, ask Him to cover you with His feathers, invite you into the heights of praise, and deliver you from the bonds of earth into spiritual freedom. Ask Him to heal your wounds so that you may soar with Him into moments of blue-sky joy and land safely…even on broken wings.
Jesus, how I long to be healed. When worries and sorrows distress me, I am unable to rise above them in my own power. I am broken. But I am Your child, beloved by You…and I trust in Your universe-creating power to bring healing to my spirit, to work all things out for good. Be my refuge and strength as I seek to rise above the big and little problems of daily life. Restore my hope, and cover me with Your wings of peace. In Your redeeming name, Amen.
To learn more about the grace of Jesus Christ, go to this page: https://lightbournecreative.com/good-news-for-you/
© Copyright 2023 Nancy C. Williams, Lightbourne Creative (text and photography)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. #eagleswings #brokenwings #causeofplanecrash #anxiety #refuge #peace #safelanding
Republished with permission from Blogs.crossmap.com, featuring inspiring Bible verses about The Privileged Life: Flying on Broken Wings.
