Matthew 3:1-12
Charles Plumb, a
U.S. Naval Academy graduate, was a jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat
missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb
ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent 6
years in a communist Vietnamese prison. He survived the ordeal and now
lectures on lessons learned from that experience.
One day, when Plumb
and his wife were sitting in a restaurant, a man at another table came up and
said, "You're Plumb! You flew jet fighters in Vietnam from the
aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down!" "How in
the world did you know that?" asked Plumb. "I packed your
parachute," the man replied. Plumb gasped in surprise and
gratitude. The man pumped his hand and said, "I guess it
worked!" Plumb assured him, "It sure did. If your chute
hadn't worked, I wouldn't be here today."
Plumb couldn't
sleep that night, thinking about that man. Plumb says, "I kept
wondering what he might have looked like in a Navy uniform: a white hat,
a bib in the back, and bell-bottom trousers. I wonder how many times I
might have seen him and not even said 'Good morning,' 'how are you?' or
anything because, you see, I was a fighter pilot and he was just a
sailor." Plumb thought of the many hours the sailor had spent on a
long wooden table in the bowels of the ship, carefully weaving the shrouds and
folding the silks of each chute, holding in his hands each time the fate of
someone he didn't know.
Now, Plumb asks his
audience, "Who's packing your parachute?" Everyone has someone
who provides what they need to make it through the day. Plumb also points
out that he needed many kinds of parachutes when his plane was shot down over
enemy territory -- he needed his physical parachute, his mental parachute, his
emotional parachute, and his spiritual parachute. He called on all these
supports before reaching safety.
There are people in
our world, past and present that are parachute packers. They make the way for others. They provide what others need to make it
through the day. They ensure that today
is a better day than yesterday and that tomorrow will be even better. The role that these people play is very
important, but sometimes can be overlooked.
Some of you may
have heard of the story of Charles Plumb, but you probably hadn’t heard about
his parachute packer. Many of you can
think of additional parachute packers from our world. With the death of Nelson Mandela this week, I
cannot think of a better person to give the title of parachute packer. Mandela faced much adversity throughout his
life as he worked to end apartheid in South Africa, including spending 27 years
in prison. He eventually became South
Africa’s first democratically elected president. Mandela prepared the way for all of South
Africa. He ensured that tomorrow would
be brighter than yesterday for a whole nation.
If we go back to
our text from Matthew, I would consider John the Baptist to be a parachute
packer. Sure he may have looked a little
funny in his clothing of camel’s hair and those who dined with him might have
been perplexed by his diet of locust and honey.
But John the Baptist was a parachute packer. He prepared the way for Jesus. He proclaimed the coming kingdom and
encouraged repentance. John the Baptist
made the paths straight. He made it
known that someone more powerful was coming.
That person was so important that John was not even worthy to carry his
sandals. That person would baptize with
the Holy Spirit.
If you know the
musical Godspell, then you know the tune that John the Baptist sang. It is the ultimate theme song of the
parachute packer, of someone who does preparation for others. He sang, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
Prepare ye the way of the Lord. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” John the Baptist, in all of his preparations,
packed a pretty good parachute for Jesus.
His works were a prelude to the coming of Jesus and they ensured a safe
landing for the King of Kings.
During this season
of Advent we prepare for the coming of the Christ-child, a babe born in
Bethlehem. We make our hearts and our
minds ready to welcome this newborn child who has changed the world. He is the one who has packed our parachute
for life. He has promised that we will
have what we need to make it through the day.
He has protected us over enemy territory. Jesus has ensured that we will ultimately
reach safety. Jesus, the one who is, who
was, and who will come again, is the ultimate parachute packer of our lives.
Mandela, John the
Baptist, and Jesus are well-known parachute packers, but there are other
parachute packers that are not as well-known.
In daily life it is easy to miss what is most important. We ignore those around us, failing to say
hello, please, or thank you. We minimize
occasions that deserve congratulations, compliments, and recognition. We get to busy to do small random acts of
kindness. Those parachute packers around
us deserve to be treated as humans. They
deserve to feel important.
As you go through
this week, this month, this season of Advent, this coming year, I would invite
you to consider and recognize who has packed your parachute. Also, in this season of giving, reflect on
whose parachutes you have helped to pack.
How can we help prepare the way for our friends, our family, and those
whom we do not even know? How can we help
to prepare the way for them to know our Savior, Emmanuel? May you be parachute packers for those you
love. May you be preparers of the way
for the coming kingdom, the kingdom of God here on earth. And may you always recognize those around you
who help to pack your parachute. Amen.
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