Soul-Hijack

 Sometimes you just never know when a story will come spilling out... unexpected. raw. real. honest. 

In a world where we are all so guarded, you have to be ready to listen when a heart opens up and you hear something you weren't prepared for. Something surprising. transforming. bonding. 

I look out the large bay windows at the mountain jetting straight out into the blue heavens. A hotel resort only a reasonable drive from home that's become an escaping place over the years. I've come here many times to pause, recharge. And today, I'm really needing it. Books in hand, I'm planning to head outside to find a chair near the pond so I can remind my body what it means to relax. A trauma-ravaged one like mine has to be told that often and a soul wrapped in fear can forget it: it's okay to let go. breathe. reset. 

But a conversation at the window with some tourists has broken out and soon, I'm tuning in. Florida residents up to see Alaska thanks to one of the many cruises that come through each summer. The hotel is hopping with people... other guests I'm gathering are part of the same tour group. 

The lady adds that it's actually not her first time to this area and proceeds to launch into a most startling tale: Back in the 1980s, she took a military hop with her two young children from Japan that was destined for Seattle. While en route, it suddenly became apparent that the flight had been hijacked by a disgruntled military person on board. The guy had a knife and was threatening passengers.Worse yet, thanks to the configuration of the plane, the pilots separated from passengers in the plane. For safety precautions, the crew made an emergency landing at the large Air Force base here locally so they could deal with the situation. The plane safely touched down and passengers had de-board and stay for three days until things got sorted out.  According to her, everyone on board was questioned, and the incident investigated. Surprisingly, news never really got out about it, and we all concluded it was probably because the military wanted to deal with it in-house as much as possible. Three days after first touching down in Alaska, the same passengers (minus the hijacker who, by this time, had been arrested) boarded the plane again and made their way to their original destination, Seattle. 

As the lady talked, I suddenly realized that I could relate in a way to how she'd felt that day as she protected her two small children and wondered if they'd all get out alive, much less make it to their final destination. No, I've never been on a plane that was hijacked. But my soul has been hijacked many times before. I've been the one feeling helpless at the hands of another who's lost their way and is taking it out on those around them. I've faced the same fear and wondered how I'll survive. I've tried to cope. hold on. 

All of us have soul hijackings. Moments when we are surprisingly sabotaged. Someone or something shows up unexpectedly, and we feel like we've lost any control over our own space, voice, or choices. We are entirely at their mercy. Silent, we wonder how or if we'll find a way through. A way out. 

In these moments, we may feel like we are at a loss of how to proceed. Panic may set in, and we may find ourselves racing through possible escape options, only to realize we are hostage to the situation. We cannot remove ourselves from it.  And, even more troubling, it feels like Jesus is far from us and we are unsure of our safety. What do we do? 

I find a chair and finally settle in to de-stress my own heart to the trickle-splash of water fountain. But somehow, I can't seem to get the lady's story out of my head nor the attitude with which she moved on from it. As she put it, she said, "People ask me all the time, when I tell them that story, if I'm afraid to fly. I'm not because after all, it's a one-in-a-million chance anyway and I've already had mine, so I'll take the other chances." 

Maybe moving on from the scene of trauma looks like finding your way back on board. Looks like conquering fear and deciding that, since the worst case scenario has already happened, your chances are probably better going forward. 

I recognize now that, when the soul is feeling strangled... when detachment makes me think the Pilot Himself is unaware... I am only left with one way to cope: resign to the reality of the situation - then cling to hope with all I am. I may not see a way forward, and the unknown may threaten to raise every fear-fiber in my being. But I still have a choice. Even when others or circumstances dictate I'm left with none. I can still choose to face the scariness holding the hand of God. 

When all I've seen and learned has reminded me over and over again that nothing can ever separate me from His love, not even the worst imaginable has the power to contradict what He's said repeatedly: trust Me, and all will be well. Even amid the cascade of stress hormones pulsing through my body, the tensing up of muscles, the alarm-sound of a brain going into overdrive to protect itself, the shallowness of breath... God's love has not lessened, nor His attention been removed. Eyes always on me, heart turned toward me. 

Ride out the unpredictable with God, and you never have to worry. Ever. 

Soul-hijacks of any kind never have the last word. Never get to finally and fatally control you. Not when the worst has been said or the harshest done. In anything and all things, the final result lies with God. And since He's promised to never leave or forsake you, even the evilest and most horrible, painful things don't have an eternal grip on you. God does. 

The same God who is always moving toward you. Always attaching Himself to you. Always pulling you in closer, safer. 

Heart-beat slows and lungs take in oxygen deep, and I close my eyes and make myself still. Sun warms my stress-beat body and I make the muscles relax. Make the soul calm. Because the Prince of Peace is also my peace and here, in this space of faith, there is no soul-hijack. No reason to defend. brace. tense. 

Soul can soar high and spirit can rise because with Him, all is well... no matter where we find ourselves. Ears were open to a story and a life shared and, in turn, my own heart took heart. You never know how or where Grace will meet you. Only that it's never not on the way.