When God Saved a Pilot
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
About ten minutes before gate pushback, the copilot discovered that the aileron trim was not working. I reset the power supply three times to no avail and then called maintenance. A mechanic came immediately. He repeated what I had done—recycling the switch and power—and then reset the circuit breaker twice as well. Then he got out the manual to see if we could leave without the trim working. Some minor maintenance is deferrable to keep planes on schedule. The mechanic found we could leave if the trim was level. We checked the trim indicator and found it to be greater than 1 degree. I did not consider that to be “level,” and the copilot and mechanic agreed. I was relieved now, thinking that whatever might have been about to happen on the f light could not happen now. Then the mechanic reached up and reset the breaker for the third time. The mechanic toggled the trim switch again, and the trim worked. How could that be? He had just reset it twice and shifted power sources three times before that. I began to feel cornered, as God seemed to be pressing me now for something. Taxi out was slow for multiple f lights in front of us. I remembered my promise to God before leaving for Costa Rica. I would do whatever God asked if God would take care of my back and knees during the expected heavy construction work. God had taken care of me. Finally, we were number two for takeoff. The United Airlines Boeing 777 on the runway, the largest US-built twin-engine commercial airplane, ran up its engines to start its takeoff roll. Then it stopped the takeoff in front of us and slowly taxied off the runway with some unanticipated problem! It is very rare to see an abort, much less a 777 abort. I never saw any before or since.
Then I heard God speak in the voice I recognized from years before: “I want you to make a PA to the passengers.” This was a bad idea. Announcements on a plane’s public address system are often ignored, heard in pieces, or completely misunderstood. And my own voice does not carry well over a microphone. I tried to rationalize that the results of my giving such a message would not be too great, as after all, there were only about two hundred passengers and crew. I did not know what God was going to have me say, but I guessed that I might get a couple of passengers complaining to the airline, for which I would be admonished. I rationalized that if a few people might really consider faith, it might be worth it. But I really did not want to jeopardize my career. Thus, stalling, I asked God what to say. “I will give you the words. You just open your mouth.” When I resisted a third time by complaining, God declared, “You made me a promise to do whatever I would ask of you if I would take care of you in Costa Rica. If you are not going to keep your promises to me, do not make any more and I will not ask you to serve me again.” After knowing the joy of serving God in Costa Rica, Guatemala, and with Adam, no longer being able to serve God would be like death. I could not let go of Jesus Christ no matter the cost. Once again I could not withstand the will of my Savior and Lord. Once again, God humbled me. This was the third time the Lord had spoken directly to me, but it would not be the last. I opened my mouth, and the Lord provided the words.
Good morning. This is Captain Findiesen speaking. I have just returned from a mission trip to Costa Rica, where I had a wonderful experience. They tell us that about half of Americans say they are Christians. Therefore, I would like to ask the Christians on the airplane to please raise their hands. For the rest of you, look at how crazy these people are. Our f light to New York today is four and a half hours long. You can watch the movie, or read the paper, or you can use your time wisely.
After maybe a ten second pause, realizing the Lord was finished, I concluded with the mundane “Flight attendants, prepare for takeoff.” When finished, I realized that what I said in the PA was more important than I had rationalized. I wondered who on the plane the message was for. Little did I know the audience God intended! Again I had underestimated what God can do when even a reluctant servant does God’s will.
The following is a capsule of the answering machine calls in order.
Monday
• Stephanie Segal for Paula Zhan with phone numbers to reach them • The Baltimore Sun newspaper
• Someone representing Deborah Norville • Tanya Black of WJZ-TV • The Times in London
Tuesday
• Molly Knight of the Baltimore Sun for a Sunday paper article • Fox News from Dallas, Texas • Cathleen Falsani, Chicago Sun-Times religion writer • The Capital, our local Annapolis paper • Dick Ireland of WRBS, a Christian radio station in Baltimore • WBAL-TV • Mike Tyrone for Joe Scarborough
Wednesday
• Keith Alexander of the Washington Post
Thursday
• Matt Ewell of Inside Edition (he went so far as to contact the garden railroad club I belonged to for a character reference from the club president)
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
When God Saved a Pilot is the story of God’s calling the author into action on numerous occasions. One of those was headline news and is included, but others preceded and followed to show how the authors faith was increased over time by doing God’s will and not his own which God often had to correct.
About the Author
The author is a retired Air Force instructor pilot and was a commercial airline pilot for Continental, Air Cal and American Airlines. After becoming a Christian he led adult Bible studies for over twenty years, been on numerous mission trips, been a Lay Leader at a large Methodist church and became a Certified Lay Minister. He was the Baltimore Washington Conference Man of the year in 2011. In 2004 as Captain for American he asked the Christian passenger to please raise their hands.