“What’s your name?” I asked as I leaned forward to catch his attention. «Lautaro, and yours?»

The noise made it difficult to communicate, even though we were only a few yards away. I replied and, although I already knew the answer, I asked him, «What’s that you’re reading? Is it a Bible?»

“Yes. You ‘re reading one too, aren’t you?” he said while pointing to the makeshift table where I had set my Bible down.

«Yes. What part of it are you reading?»

«The genealo…how do you say it? Here in Genesis…They gave it to me today and I ‘m starting to read it from the beginning. I love it. And you?» «The story of when Jesus calmed the storm. I thought it was timely,» I said with a knowing wink.

We were thousands of feet up in the air, and in the midst of the biggest storm I’ve ever flown through on an airplane. We were both sitting in the last row, four empty seats and an aisle away from each other.

With each turbulence, we would bounce on our seats and our heads would bump against the window.

I congratulated him for reading the Bible at a young age, under those strange circumstances, and although chaos reigned, we were both absorbed in our reading and surrounded by the peace of knowing we were in God’s hands.

Just then, I remembered the story of a boy who was travelling alone and was calm in the midst of a great storm. People around him were worried, but the stewardess, after seeing how peaceful he was, asked him why he wasn’t afraid, and he replied, «I’m not afraid because my dad is the captain. I trust nothing bad will happen to us.»

I felt that same assurance that dawn as I was flying, and today’s verse gained new meaning.

You might not be flying thousands of feet up in the air today, but you can open your Bible in the midst of a tremendous spiritual battle that’s taking place, in the midst of chaos and noise. The only thing that will allow you to rest assured and face the turbulence that comes up today is knowing that Jesus is captain of your life. Even if our feet are on the ground throughout the day, He can make us tread upon the heights. Let’s trust in Him. He’s our strength.