Draw Near – 365 Guides to Greater Intimacy with GodSample

RAT ON THE PLANE Flying over heavily-wooded terrain, a pilot heard gnawing noises in the back of his small aircraft. Panic gripped him as he realized that a rat was chewing through wires vital to the plane's operation. By the time he could get to an airport, it might be too late. Then an idea struck him. He nosed his airplane as high as he could without losing consciousness and put on his oxygen mask. In just a few minutes, the gnawing stopped and the rat was dead. Many shuffle through life with gnawing doubt, fears, guilt, and inferiorities until these things overcome them. They have tried many ways to get rid of these overwhelming naggings, but all have failed. One thing, however, has never failed. When we nose the craft of our lives upward, real relief is ours. Isaiah promised: 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 40:31). Doubts, fears, guilt, and inferiorities cannot last in the pure presence of our Christ. The psalmist added: You will show me the path of life; In Your Presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). When doubts return to gnaw at us, it is time to nose heavenward to bask again in His presence. These "rats" of doubt die as we soar higher and higher into the pure presence of Christ.