Thoughts from the Edge of Exploration (#686)
"Anything worth discovering is better explored than explained." No where is that truer than the learning to live in relationship to Jesus. American Airlines pilot, part-time historian, and long-time adventurer, Jeff Andrechyn returns to the podcast and joins Wayne as they share some of the books they've been reading about our recent explorers leading up to the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing on January 20 this year. Their example can provide some valuable encouragement as we learn to go beyond human conventions and ride on the winds of the Spirit.
Podcast Notes:
Previous podcasts with Jeff
Wind, Sand, and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Lindbergh by A. Scott Berg
From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne
American Moonshot by Douglas Berkley
If You Can Help Us in Kenya
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I think there must be different kinds of adventures: Some we want to go on, others we go because there is no other way, others where we reach our goal and ask ourselves “what’s the point?”, and others where we desperately want to explore, see, taste, touch, but it has been denied to us.
Listening to Jeff, I think I must be wired very differently. I don’t see myself as having much appetite for adventure, and I often feel that I’m not interesting enough for people who do have that appetite. I think it has led me in the past to try to get the form of some different kinds of experiences, but without sharing the love of the same things that made them want to explore in the first place. It’s weird how we can end up trying to reverse-engineer things like that, maybe why we end up with laws, maps and lists of things we feel we should be doing.
As an aside, I’ve still been thinking a lot about the podcast with Dave Coleman a few weeks ago. I wanted to respond then, but didn’t know how. It touched me how Dave described something like a place where we can come home to in God and be with him where we are. I really want to explore for myself what that means, especially what God’s love is like and what’s changed because of what Jesus has done (as opposed to something like a fire insurance policy). I don’t know how to go about exploring that, but thanks for the conversations, they have been a great help.
Caleb, I’ve enjoyed your exchange with Jeff. I don’t consider myself much of an adventurer either in life. I’d prefer a comfortable hammock alongside an alpine lake. But I’ve concluded life is an adventure, whether I like it or not. And sticking to the safe routes will also lead to the most boring ones. Following him, learning to love, taking the road less traveled have fueled my heart with joy over the past twenty-five years and I highly recommend it. I’ve met many people out in the unmapped world of intimacy with Christ and have yet to meet one person who regrets leaving the hammock and scaling the heights.
Caleb, most adventures that pushed me into uncharted territory are ones I did not chose, ie unable to fly for 8 years because of medical reasons, having to send my daughter to a therapeutic boarding school, the death of my mom and sister (my best friend) 911 and the collapse of the Airline industry… I could go on and on but they all pushed me to new frontiers where I met Father in a way I would have never been able to see him otherwise. None of them my choosing. Almost like Father had to push me out of the nest.
Hi Jeff, thank you for getting back to me, I didn’t know this side of your experience when you described finding new frontiers in God. In fact, what you said helps me see how much of a gift it is that God’s given us all this good to explore, both in Him and His world, in spite of our weakness.
I must have an adventurous spirit….my heart just soured listening to this podcast! So many beautiful truths and thoughts that it is difficult to remember them all.
The NASA comments made me smile. My Dad worked at NASA during the Apollo missions. We lived on the same “island” as Cape Canaveral. We watched all the Apollo rockets take off from either our roof or across the water. To stand there and feel the rumble was awesome, even to remember so many years later. Dad received a few momentos as an employee during the missions that remain valued treasures. Yet I’ll never lose the memory of the experiences. They still make my heart soar.
Much like those moments with Father….a taste of what’s to come….they make my heart soar.
Thanks for taking me on such a beautiful flight!
(This is Wayne) I’m hearing from a number of people who have relatives or other connections to NASA. One of the things I wanted to do was watch a shuttle launch in Florida, but never got the chance. The one time I had scheduled a trip there for it, they scrubbed the launch and postponed it for more than a month, I couldn’t stay. I’m glad you got to see so many of them and glad you enjoyed the podcast….
Christine
Your comment made the whole experience of getting ready for this podcast with Wayne worth it. I read books, watched documentaries, traveled to Cape Canaveral, talked with Father about it all (and found Him very interested) and eventually traveled to LA to podcast with Wayne. We were hoping to waken our old best dreams of being part of the Apollo generation and wanted to take a few others with us. So glad this podcast found you. Your dads work had a profound impact on my life.
Thanks Wayne and Jeff. I really appreciated your responses. Keep soaring!
This man has a wonderful mind! I love listening to him…Gonna read a couple of those books.
Finally someone who gets me ?… but I loved the opportunity to speak with Wayne about a future exploration that I believe will exceed our expectation