Internet Cafe

Friday, March 6, 2009

Are you a Sully?


The Internet Cafe welcomes Heidi Plumley all the way from Asia!!

Captain Sullenberger, “Sully,” made headlines and gained international recognition when he guided a 60 ton powerless jet safely into the Hudson River. On one newscast, I heard Sully acknowledge, “It took all the experience the crew and I had to land the aircraft safely and save 155 lives.”The truth is that we are all Sullys. Sometimes it takes all the muscle, inner determination, and experience we have to navigate the crisis in our lives to a safe conclusion.


Last year we adopted a child who has demonstrated behaviors of Reactive Attachment Disorder, which basically means that she has not bonded with us and rejects the affection and attention of her parents and siblings. For nine months we have tried different methods to “start her engine” and keep the family afloat.


It has been a very difficult time for all five of us in our family. Some days I dread getting out of bed, knowing that I am going to face a child that refuses affection, that won’t look me in the eyes, that resists my attempts to teach her something new, something as simple as painting with a paintbrush. I also have to face my own feelings of frustration, helplessness, anger, and impatience.


Welcoming our daughter home has affected us all.


Our family went from being well adjusted and carefree to being in crisis mode. What’s more is that I am the one in the captain’s seat. As the primary caretaker of my children, the challenge of helping my daughter and modeling proper behavior before the other children falls to me.


The safety and health of my family rests on my ability and determination. If I don’t get this right, the family craft and all lives aboard could be destroyed.Sometimes we all find ourselves in the captain’s seat.


Perhaps it is a family situation, a marriage on the brink of disaster, an illness, an economic crisis; regardless of what it is, there are times when we are the one at the controls.


The safety of the lives depending on us rests on our courage, ability, and determination.In a society where we have traditionally been able to buy a solution, pass responsibility to someone else, or take the easy path, it may seem easier to ditch than to stay the course.

But we, like Sully, must rise to the situation that stares us in the face when our feet hit the floor each morning. We must not retreat or ignore the stakes. We must stay engaged, knowing that every second counts.We must exercise all the mental discipline and courage we have to safely navigate our crisis.

Can we do it?

As a follower of Jesus, I believe I can.

I believe that I am not appointed for failure, but for victory. Joshua 1:3 says, “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you.”

As I go through my day and face rejection, resistance, and the danger of my own negative emotions, I cling to this truth. This ground, this situation, this day, has been given to me. The victory is mine. This place that my foot has come to belongs to me, not the enemy. I was not appointed for stumbling.If I believe from the outset that it is hopeless or that I am incapable of the challenge, then the outcome will reflect my negative beliefs.

But if I believe that there is indeed hope and that I am not appointed for stumbling but that I was in fact specially selected to be the one at the helm for this job, then my courage rises to the task and with it, the ability to man the craft. “Faith is the victory that overcomes…” It is my faith in the promises of God that will bring me and my “passengers” to a safe landing.Because of God’s Word and His precious gifts, my family will survive this crisis. And not only that, but we will each have a richer life to live because of it.

How about you?

Are you up for your challenge?

Do you have a “destined for doom” attitude or a “guaranteed success” mentality?

What promises of God can you stand on to walk the victory path?

“Thank You God, that You always lead me in triumph in Christ (II Cor. 2:14). Thank You for promising an overcoming victory instead of failure (Romans 8:37). Thank You for giving me both the will and the ability to do the right thing and to stay the course (Phil. 2:13). I commit my way to You and I take my stand on Your Word. Lead on, O King Eternal! In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.”


In Him,

Heidi Plumley (Stonefox)

Heidi is a wife, mother of three, and missionary in Asia. She is learning about life, love, and victory in Jesus in areas of family and ministry and blogs about what she is learning at www.momsministryandmore.blogspot.com.


image courtsey of Yahoo.com




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17 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Awesome as always Heidi!

March 6, 2009 at 12:49 AM  
Blogger Denise said...

Such a wonderful post, thanks for sharing.

March 6, 2009 at 1:27 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks for the blog. I will have to disagree with you though. Just because God promised Joshua victory over a situation, doesn't mean He promised us victory. God often teaches us through our failure not victories. I also believe that, unlike the pilot of the aircraft, God wants us to work out of His strength in us not "everything within us" to deal with life's difficulties. I am bringing up a difficult child with extreme behavior disorders and I am learning day in and day out to depend on His strength for what He wants to teach me through my successes as well as my failures.

March 6, 2009 at 6:54 AM  
Blogger Susan Storm Smith said...

Another winning post Heidi. And right on time, as I look at the craft I am the piloting. Thanks for words of truth and encouragement.

Praying for you and your family, and the wonderful mission you are on in Asia.

love and hugs!

March 6, 2009 at 7:32 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great post!

March 6, 2009 at 7:59 AM  
Blogger DaNella Auten said...

Anonymous... What about Jeremiah 29:11 "I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans for a HOPE and a future." I think God wants us to suceed. I will be praying for you.
DaNella
Click my picture, and go to my blog and email me if you need someone to talk to you, and pray for you.

Oh and good job Heidi, I'll keep your little one's in my prayer.

March 6, 2009 at 8:00 AM  
Blogger Julie said...

Heidi,
I appreciated your post today.

What I am grateful for the most is that I don't have to have what it takes. Jesus completes my incompleteness. For so many years I tried to be it all.
I tried to have it all together to make it all happen...and finally it all fell apart... and He came to my rescue.

I do have the victory... in CHRIST.. HE is my victory. Every situation may not work out as I would have planned or orchestrated, but I know that He has it all. It works out for good..because HE is good.

Loved this post!
Thanks, Friend!

March 6, 2009 at 10:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Heidi that was fabulous! Just what I needed to hear. Thank you for using your trials to help us. I can't imagine the struggles you face on a daily basis and I'll be praying for you, your daughter, an family as you navigate your aircraft. I am confident the Lord has an amazing plan in store for your family. Keep up the good work and the fight of faith!

-FringeGirl

March 6, 2009 at 10:03 AM  
Blogger Laura said...

What a woman of courage you model for us, Heidi. I did not know you were living with this heartbreaking challenge. What a blessing your daughter has in you, as her mother, a woman who will not give up on her. You bless me with your strength and openness. Our situations may not always look victorious to eyes with narrow vision, but we are always victorious in Him, no?

Amen to that, sister!

March 6, 2009 at 6:32 PM  
Blogger Stonefox said...

To Anonymous (and others who disagree with my post),

Thank you for bringing up some important points, specifically that victory comes in Christ.

II Corinthians 3:5 says, "Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God."

The Bible teaches that if we are Christians, Christ dwells in us. Therefore, we have within ourselves sufficiency, adequacy, and victory. Of course this is not from our own resources, but it IS there in the form of Christ. While I did not state that flat out in this post due to word limitation and because of the angle of the post, this is the Biblical foundation and background of the post; we are sufficient in Christ and He has given us His strength in the midst of our weakness.

The Bible also tells us that Christ ALWAYS leads us in victory. (See II Cor. 2:14, also II Cor 1:20 and Romans 8:37) I think that where you are coming from is that we can't assume victory to look a certain way. Victory isn't a "perfect" child or situation. It isn't a "perfect" us. It isn't everything turning out hunkey dorey necessarily. I agree with this.

Victory is living from an internal well-spring of life despite what the outer circumstances may be. Paul demonstrated this kind of life in the NT, as did many of the early church personalities. Again, Christ is the source of this (John 7:38).

No matter what difficulties we may face from without and from our own selves, God intends for the life of Christ to be manifested in our mortal bodies (Romans 8:11) That is victory. Yet this lifestyle does not come naturally. It comes from a deep faith in God and a submission to His Spirit (See again Romans 8). This was the angle I approached the article from.

I absolutely agree that we can learn from our failures and mistakes. I also believe we should learn from those of others. In fact, God intends for us to learn from the failures and mistakes of the Israelites to avoid missing out on our promised land...and our intended victory. (This is all over Hebrews and specifically stated in I Cor. 10: 1-6)

This is a very quick response and I would LOVE to dialogue more via email. I do not take disagreement as conflict; I take it as iron sharpening iron and would love to further discuss if anyone is up for it. stonefox@pobox.com

March 6, 2009 at 8:01 PM  
Blogger Julie said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

March 6, 2009 at 8:27 PM  
Blogger Julie said...

OK, Heidi, That was me that deleted the last comment. I wanted to add something so I just decided to start over.

I loved this post and your explanation. I couldn't agree with you more.

Love your heart, friend!
Julie

March 6, 2009 at 8:39 PM  
Blogger Amico Dio said...

Learning from failure is most certainly a victory! I'm praying for you and your little one!

March 6, 2009 at 8:46 PM  
Blogger Marisa said...

Thank you for sharing your difficulties with your daughter! And thank you for all the verses! They were so encouraging- ones I need to meditate on to help sustain me during the rough days with my little guy!

March 7, 2009 at 1:58 PM  
Blogger elaine @ peace for the journey said...

Great post, Heidi, and a perfect "come alongside" with my recent posts of purity! Yes, we're the Sully's of our family ship, and with the help of God...mostly with the help of God...we can bring them in to safe harbor.

Thanks for your continuing and tenacious pursuit of the sacred. Love your heart, friend.

peace~elaine

March 7, 2009 at 2:03 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

God bless you, Heidi! i'm praying for your family struggles right now.

March 8, 2009 at 9:03 PM  
Blogger Smelling Coffee said...

Heidi~ Just read your post here. I love how the Lord is using these dificulties to bless and inspire and encourage others via blogging - while you're all the way across the world.

I am praying for you, my friend... and now know much better how to direct those prayers. Your life and your difficulties are bringing glory to the Lord - already a Romans 8:28 promise fulfilled.

with love... Jennifer

March 12, 2009 at 10:04 AM  

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