Article January 6, 2014 Issue

Don't misread the 'holding pattern'

Jane Keogh

When you are a passenger on board a commercial airplane flight, you know that the pilots and the ground crew have your safety as their top priority. If you find your plane is in a holding pattern, you know it is for your protection, that the crew are waiting until the airspace is free for you to land safely. You don’t worry that the air tower has forgotten about you, or that you will run out of fuel before landing, or that there is no runway below, because you trust the crew cares enough to get the plane down safely. They are in charge because they have the skills to accomplish the tasks at hand.

I think this analogy can relate to our journey in life, and our relationship with God.

As a lifelong student of Christian Science, I strive to trust that I will always be safely guided by God. A Bible character whom I admire, and who also trusted his life to God, was Joseph. He showed such love and commitment to God throughout his entire lifetime. He was loyal and faithful throughout each trying circumstance. And he encountered a lot! He was betrayed in almost every primary human relationship he had. His response to these hardships? Through each trouble, he rose higher in his understanding of God’s protection, and as his thought rose, so did his circumstances improve, until he was able to impart good toward thousands of people, not just his family, neighbors, and friends. He rose from a shepherd boy, to the head of Potiphar’s household, to governor of Egypt, next in line to Pharaoh.