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Several years ago, I was flying back to Dallas from Lubbock, Texas, when I experienced by far the most turbulent flight I have ever been on. 

It was like riding a roller coaster except you couldn’t see the drops coming to prepare for them. The overhead luggage compartments were jarred open and passengers’ carry-on luggage fell out striking passengers and then falling into the aisles. The flight was so rough that the oxygen masks were literally jarred loose and fell in front of our faces. 

Looking out the window, I couldn’t see anything except an occasional streak of lightning.  

The plane was rocking, rolling, dipping, shaking, and it felt like the plane was about to come apart. 

During this time of turbulence, the pilot came on the plane’s loudspeaker system and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing some turbulence.” I thought to myself, “Some turbulence! That has got to be the greatest understatement that I’ve ever heard!”  

The pilot continued, “We will have to circle the Dallas/Fort Worth airport for awhile waiting for proper landing conditions. Ladies and gentlemen, there is nothing to be worried about. We are in touch with the tower and they assure us that the storm will pass in a few minutes.”

When the pilot said that he was in contact with the “tower,” he was referring to the control tower at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Although we were flying through a terrible storm, the tower guided us toward the airport runway, toward safety and toward a safe landing.

Today, America is in a storm.  

We cannot see out the windows.  

We are all flying in circles.  

But we must remember as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ that we too have a “high tower.”  He who sits in the “high tower” knows every plane, every passenger and every storm.  

“Blessed be the Lord my Rock…. My lovingkindness and my fortress, My high tower and my deliverer, My shield and the One in whom I take refuge.” (Psalm 144:1-2)

The same God that watched over David is watching over America today. Sometimes I weep because of what God does—but I trust Him! There are times when I wish God would not do what he does—but I trust him!   

The book of Job speaks of human suffering but never tells us why the righteous suffer. God never told Job why those calamities came upon him. He received no comfort from the words of his three contemporaries, his so-called “friends,” because the human mind cannot answer the mystery of suffering. Later, a young man named Elihu came and tried to comfort Job, but he too failed.  

Paul was as confused about the events of life as we are. He referred to the events of this life as “the mystery of iniquity” (2 Thessalonians 2:7).

You and I, with our natural abilities and our own strength, are no match for the problems we will face.

Angel Martinez said, “Unless we have within us that which is above us, we are going to be defeated by that which is around us.”  

Unless we have the Spirit of the Living God within us, we will be defeated by the trials of life.  

Unless we have faith in our high tower, the storms of life will sweep us away or we will freeze when there is turbulence. 

A Christian is strongest when he believes God. In order to destroy us, Satan will steal our faith in God from us and replace it with seeds of doubt. Remember the words of Jesus, “The thief [Satan] comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).

Thank God that the Christian life does not depend upon the strength of the Christian!  

The strength and power of the Christian life is our belief in the promises of God.  

As you exercise your faith, you will become invincible. Jesus said if we have faith the size of a mustard seed, we can move mountains (Matthew 17:20).  

A believer is saved by faith, but a believer must also live by faith (Romans 1:17).  

One day the clouds will be lifted, and we will see “the airport.” And when we do, we will understand what we should have understood all along—the One in the “high tower” saw our entire lives and knew exactly what he was doing!

One of the wisest men who ever lived wrote these words three thousand years ago:

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; they imagine it an unscalable wall. Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.” (Proverbs 18:10-12)

Solomon said the righteous trust God and the unrighteous trust in their riches and think they are above harm. 

Solomon is right.

We must realize God is the only source of our trust.  

There are three fundamental elements of trust:

1. Predictability. God’s behavior is consistent with his righteous nature. Therefore, he is worthy of our trust because whatever he does is righteous.

• Dependability. God will never let us down or forsake us (Matthew 28:20).  

• Faith. One of the purposes of God recording the experiences of various characters in the Bible is to demonstrate ongoing faithfulness to people, which guarantees continuing faithfulness to his people in the present and the future. These events are the seeds from which confidence grows and allows us to go forward in the face of an uncertain future.  

Because God is both predictable and dependable, we have the assurance that his future behavior will mirror his past behavior.  

Therefore, God is trustworthy, and he will never fail us.

Solomon said, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…” (Proverbs 3:5).  

If you are not going to trust God, what are you going to do? To take matters into your own hands is spiritual suicide!  

When have you ever turned your back on God and come out a winner?  

Some have asked, “Where is God in all of this?”  

God is:

• In the same place he was when his Son died on the cross.

• In the millions of people who are responding by donating their time, making masks, giving food and money to help.

God is in his “high tower”.

Today I am praying that our nation will come together. But even more importantly, I am praying that our nation will come back to God. 

God, please bless America and please save America.

*The idea for this sermon was taken from a sermon entitled, “My High Tower” by Jack Hyles.

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