Posted on 05/27/2008 8:07:55 PM PDT by RDTF
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — It seemed like an almost literal answer to their prayers. When two New Zealand pilots ran out of fuel in a microlight airplane they offered prayers and were able to make an emergency landing in a field — coming to rest right next to a sign reading, "Jesus is Lord."
Grant Stubbs and Owen Wilson, both from the town of Blenheim on the country's South Island, were flying up the sloping valley of Pelorus Sound when the engine spluttered, coughed and died.
"My friend and I are both Christians so our immediate reaction in a life-threatening situation was to ask for God's help," Stubbs told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
He said he prayed during the ill-fated flight Sunday that the tiny craft would get over the top of a ridge and that they would find a landing site that was not too steep — or in the nearby sea.
-snip-
After Wilson glided the powerless craft to a landing on the grassy strip, the pair noticed they were beside a 20-foot-tall sign that read, "Jesus is Lord — The Bible."
"When we saw that, we started laughing," Stubbs said.
Nearby residents provided them with gas to fly the home-built plane back to base.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
He said he prayed during the ill-fated flight Sunday that the tiny craft would get over the top of a ridge and that they would find a landing site that was not too steep — or in the nearby sea.
ooops...reread the article. But I think my point was clear
I am not a pilot but I assume that pilots have grasp of math and trust that they can calculate such matters.
As you stated, you are not a pilot.
One who fails to calculate his fuel use correctly will not be a pilot for very long.
And one who isn’t a pilot has no concept of avionics or lack there of.
Are we going to go back and forth all night with innuendo describing do’s and don’ts?
(Just need to know if I should meter the amount of remaining coffee or make more.) :-)
No, I am heading to bed if the baby goes to sleep.
However, it seems that thousands of pilots fly every day and are able to figure out how much fuel is needed. These guys failed to follow a protocol and almost ended up dead.
I guessing they do a better job next time.
Night. :-)
"Once I landed near a brothel, was that a sign from God? "
It might have been. Did you go inside and try to,uh, convert them? (:
Oh dear, what sort of person prays for his shoe bottoms?
you never know. Could have been.
Running out of fuel is pretty lame, but praying for life doesn't seem like a bad thing. Landing in front of that sign might be the best thing to happen to those two. Might even remind them to check their fuel next time.... you never know.
If I was a passenger, I would be pissed if the pilot was doing anything but going through the emergency procedures and acting in a professional manner. The vast majority of a pilots training is how to respond to an emergency, praying isn't on that list.
It somehow seems hypocritical that Christians, who should have no fear of death, spend their time praying in critical situations, scared that they might die.
I see your point. It's hard to overcome fear of the unknown. I know that I believe in God, but I think I'd pray if somebody was holding a gun to my head or if I was in a plane about to hit the deck.
I think it's human nature. I've been in situations where I was very scared and thought to myself "Jesus please help me figure a way out of this mess." "Please help me do what I need to do, if I do it well I'll swear that you had everything to do with it and I was just along for the ride." or.... "Please don't let me hurt anybody and that I can come home."...
I'm afraid of dying. A friend of mine went through a very bad situation with a son that was injured and has serious after effects... he's a Christian and kept telling me that "God will not give you more than you can handle." I told him that I'm a very poor example of a Christian and I don't ever want to be tested like that.
His example helped me understand what I think Christianity offers some that seek it's comfort and the people that choose not to use it have to fend with the "real world" I guess.
I'm sure that God said that he helps those that help themselves and that he wanted us to be as smart as we could be.
Those guys were just at the end of their rope and thought it was a coinkydink that they landed by the sign. I thought it was pretty interesting.
You assume that if God were real and listening that he would do things exactly as we ask them in our prayers. If this were the case God would be at the mercy of the desires of flawed people which would not make Him much of a God. I don’t believe that God is so much concerned with our situation here or Earth or even life and death as much as He is with drawing us closer to Him. This is done by both good and bad circumstances. Therefore it does not make sense to say that our inability to instruct God disproves His existance.
You wrote: “You assume that if God were real and listening that he would do things exactly as we ask them in our prayers. If this were the case God would be at the mercy of the desires of flawed people which would not make Him much of a God. I don’t believe that God is so much concerned with our situation here or Earth or even life and death as much as He is with drawing us closer to Him. This is done by both good and bad circumstances. Therefore it does not make sense to say that our inability to instruct God disproves His existance.”
________
My response: Funny you mention that. Jesus taught that God will give us anything we pray for. That’s scriptural, although I expect a half dozen protests from people on this board claiming that is not the case. WHATEVER you pray for will be given to you, according to Jesus. Of course, that is silly, isn’t it? It’s just one of numerous silly things in the Bible.
And, regarding something you said in a post in response to someone else’s comments — you used that trite old claim that “there are no atheists in foxholes.” I submit there are no (true) Christians in foxholes, because even the self-proclaimed Christians pray to get the hell out of the foxhole unscathed. They are afraid of dying. Which is another thing that makes no sense. If you are a Christian, and you truly believe the baloney about an afterlife and heaven etc., you should be LOOKING FORWARD to dying. The sooner, the better, right? After all, the Christian heaven is eternal and wonderful, etc. etc. (although apparently lacking in seven virgins as other religions promise). I’ve never met a so-called Christian who, if facing death, wouldn’t cling to life with every last clawing fingernail. Strikes me as hypocritical, or at least telling that Christians doubt their own beliefs. I.e., there are no Christians in foxholes.
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