Have You Checked Your Compass Lately? - Thoughts by Katherine Kehler

“Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed. Therefore, I have set my face like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph” Isaiah 50:7

For years my husband Marvin had a pilot’s license for small planes. He enjoyed flying very much.

One summer, he and three other men decided to fly to a conference in Saskatchewan, two provinces east of us. Before taking off, Marvin started the plane, checked all the instruments, and set his course on the compass. After crossing the Rocky Mountains, they planned to stay overnight in a city near the Alberta border.

They took off and everything seemed to be proceeding smoothly. However, Marvin hadn’t realized that when he set his compass, the needle was a fraction off center. By the time it came time to land, it was getting dark (Marvin wasn’t licensed to fly at night) and Marvin realized he was off course. The four of them had had a great time talking and laughing and never noticed.

Now they were lost. The mountains were much higher than his map indicated they should be, and their destination city was nowhere in sight. A fraction of a degree off on the compass when they started flying had taken them way off course when it was time to land. What seemed like a small, insignificant error could have cost them their lives.

However, happily they were able to land safely in a small town where they spent the night. The next day they flew on to their conference.

Life is like that. If we don’t allow Jesus to set our compass (course) each morning, we can begin heading slightly off course. It may seem insignificant today and even tomorrow, but where will we be next year?