Jesus, Take the Control Wheel: Southwest Pilot Saw Flying as Ministry

When members of First Baptist Church in Boerne, Texas, heard recordings of radio transmissions from a Southwest Airlines pilot who made a harrowing emergency landing this week in Philadelphia, they recognized the voice as one of their own.

Tammie Jo Shults—the pilot who guided Flight 1380 to the ground April 17 after a midflight engine failure shot debris through a window, killing one passenger—is a recognizable figure at the Texas Hill Country church, which averages 900 in worship. She has led the children's worship program at First Baptist and taught Sunday School for children, middle schoolers, high schoolers and adults, said Staci Thompson, a longtime friend and administrative assistant in the church office.

"When we heard the voice" in media replays of cockpit recordings, "it was just like talking on the phone. That's what she sounds like," Thompson told Baptist Press.

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Life in light of the resurrection

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is both one of the best-attested and most contested events of ancient history. But for those of us who place our faith in Jesus for salvation, the resurrection is far more than a historical event—it is a crucial basis for our future hope which should affect how we live our lives.

Our hope is not in this life

One encouraging lesson from the resurrection is that we do not have to look for perfect happiness, justice, or love in this life. In fact, those who do are inevitably disappointed. Rather, we can look forward to the New Heavens and Earth where all those longings will be perfectly fulfilled.

This is a crucial part of the answer to one of the most-asked questions—why does a good God allow bad things? God did not create the world to be full of suffering and death—that came about through Adam's sin (Romans 5:12). Christ died so that sinners can be saved when they believe. If we did not believe that one day He will put all things right, an important part of the message of redemption would be missing.

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