Foggles...

Now, I want the record to show that I wasn't nervous at all. I was calm and enjoying every minute of it...until her instructor reached over and intentionally stalled the aircraft.

It turns out hearing the engine suddenly get very quiet and start dropping while we were only a few thousand feet above the ground will get your attention!

Thankfully, it was all part of the training, and within moments everything was back to normal. A little later another airplane showed up much closer than I expected on the traffic display. Let's just say I became a much more attentive passenger after that.

However, what fascinated me most wasn't the engine or the nearby airplane. It was watching Sophia. Her eyes never stopped moving. She constantly checked the airspeed, altitude, heading, engine gauges, and traffic display. Every decision she made came from what she knew to be true, not simply from what she felt in the moment.

She also told me about something pilots use called foggles. They look like oversized glasses, but they block the view outside the cockpit so the pilot can only see the instruments. The goal is simple. Learn to trust the instruments, even when your senses tell you something different. A pilot who learns to fly by the instruments can safely navigate through nearly any storm.

Similarly, life has a way of bringing storms. A difficult diagnosis. Financial pressure. A broken relationship. An unanswered prayer. In those moments, our emotions often become louder than the truth, and we begin to wonder if God is still at work.

This Sunday we'll continue our journey through Ruth 1 and discover that Naomi found herself in that very place. The first five verses were all about tragedy, and then there is a shift in verse six where we will start back up this week and cover Ruth 1:6-18. Last week, we discovered that God is working ahead of us. While Naomi was going through tragedy in chapter 1, God was already working ahead of her in Chapter 4 to prepare the lineage for the Messiah. This week, we will focus on how God sustains us while we are still in chapter 1. We can be certain that God's covenant faithfulness gives us confidence to faithfully follow Him.

I look forward to worshipping together on Sunday at 8:00, 9:15 (Full KidCity available), or 10:45 am (Full KidCity available)…OR a service in Spanish at 1:00 pm. Otherwise, you can watch the Livestream on YouTube (Like and subscribe) or on our New Life website at 9:15 am. Also, we would LOVE for you to follow us on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. 

I hope you can enjoy this beautiful weather, see you soon,

Troy