The Lord is Always in Charge
5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
According to a footnote, the same Greek word is translated in this passage as both “wind’ and “spirit.”
Like the Wind
There are many similarities between the winds of the earth and the Spirit of God. Both are invisible, uncontrollable and contain great power.
For centuries, explorers and traders have used wind power to sail across the oceans. Scientists send up weather balloons and track the jet-stream. Engineers erect wind turbines to generate electricity.
Yet despite all these uses, the wind still remains an untamed force of nature.
This is an old photograph of a dust storm chasing a car during the Great Depression.
Some Windy Facts
- Wind blows because of a difference in atmospheric pressure.
- Some plants rely on the breeze to spread seeds.
- Surface waves are wind-generated.
- Winds in the upper atmosphere drive the earth’s weather patterns.
- The Dust Bowl in the 1930s occurred on the American and Canadian prairies. A long period of drought and man’s destruction of the natural grasses led to wind erosion. The topsoil blew away, creating dark, choking dust storms.
- People called these wind-driven storms “black blizzards.”
- Near the equator, atmospheric conditions cause the wind to blow very lightly.
- Sometimes these winds die away completely.
- 18th century European sailing ships could be becalmed for weeks, unable to move until the wind started blowing again.
- Sailors called this region of the ocean “the doldrums.”
- Strangely enough, the warm tropical waters also create the most powerfully destructive windstorms on earth—hurricanes.
- Hurricanes that hit Asian countries like China and Japan are called typhoons.
- Below the equator, hurricanes are called tropical cyclones.
With the help of satellites, weathermen can watch hurricanes form and track their progress across the ocean. But with all our scientific knowledge, we still can’t stop tornadoes or hurricanes from developing or force these destructive wind storms to change direction. The only thing human beings can do is board up their house and flee.
Hurricanes
Until I saw a satellite image of a hurricane filling the Gulf of Mexico, I had no idea that these destructive rotating discs were so gigantic.
This is an image of Hurricane Isabel, which hit the eastern United States on September 18, 2003. It made landfall on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Several states are under attack by Isabel at the same time.
Hurricanes travel slowly across the earth’s surface. The average forward speed varies roughly from 10-30 mph, depending on the latitude. The further away from the equator the hurricane is, the faster it can travel. But at the same time, hurricanes weaken in strength as they move away from the warm tropical waters which helped create them.
When a house or town is flooded or destroyed by a hurricane, the insurance companies often call it “an act of God.”
Unavoidable. Something that couldn’t be prevented.
Powerless Against the Wind
Airplane pilots sometimes experience a scary condition called “wind shear.” Wind shear is when the wind suddenly changes direction or wind speed over a very short distance. It’s dangerous if the plane is close to the ground.
In 1985, Delta Flight 191 crashed at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport because of sudden wind shear. Only 27 people survived out of 163 passengers and crew.
Today, new technology and better flight training means pilots can detect wind shear earlier. If wind shear conditions are detected, the procedure is always the same. Give the engines full power and climb back up into the sky.
Airplanes also experience wind shear at higher altitudes. The key difference is that the pilots have more time to react.
During rainy conditions in Texas, a Learjet pilot described his unnerving experience with wind shear during a routine flight. As he started to approach the airport, the jets speed suddenly increased by 30 knots. Just as quickly, the wind dropped off completely, triggering a “stall warning” which the pilot handled. Circling the airport, the pilot climbed back up to a higher altitude, only to find himself pushed several hundred feet higher by an updraft.
Being a skilled pilot, he did land safely, in spite of the power and unpredictability of the wind.
Our God is Like the Wind
God can’t be controlled or used. We can’t bargain with the Holy One, demanding He answer our prayers because we did this good deed or made that great sacrifice.
While our God is loving, compassionate and good, He is God—and we are not.
Our Heavenly Father can’t be manipulated by His children or anyone else.
People have scolded God or tried to emotionally blackmail Him. Believers sulk, have pity parties and act like they’re the boss.
Lovingly, He doesn’t strike us with lightning when we forget who we’re talking to.
The Commander of the Lord’s Army
Before the battle of of Jericho, Joshua came upon a stranger,
13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 And the commander of the Lord‘s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.(Joshua 5:13-15 NIV)
I believe this was an appearance by the pre-incarnate Christ. It’s only in God’s presence that the ground under our feet becomes holy. Joshua responded in exactly the right way.
He fell on his face and awaited orders.
So how do you view your relationship with the Almighty?
These image came from Pixabay.com.
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