Warping opportunities into comforts …

Americans like to tell themselves we highly value opportunity, but for many that isn’t the case. What we desire are the rewards that come from opportunities embraced and worked, but we strongly resist anything that comes with risks.

There’s a growing, popular enterprise that’s an example of how we would rather suck the risk out of opportunity to warp it into an entertainment or comfort — indoor skydiving.

Yes, you read that right: skydiving indoors.

Okay, you really cannot “skydive” indoors, but for those who want the thrill and fun of skydiving without the risk of jumping out of a perfectly functional airplane, you can experience a simulation of skydiving that is safely done indoors. With the use of massive fans used to create a wind tunnel, companies are offering for entertainment a simulation of “flying” like that experienced when skydiving — but without the risks or hassles of the real thing. Look at some of the “frequently asked questions” one indoor skydiving company posts on its website:

Is it safe?
Yes. Every aspect of the wind tunnel design has been carefully considered to create a fully controlled environment that provides total safety. Our certified and highly-trained instructors are with you at all times during your flight, to give guidance and reassurance.

How long is a flight?
Every indoor skydiving flight is equivalent to the free fall of an outdoor skydive from 14,000 feet! For 50 seconds you will be flying in the air and experience what free fall skydiving is really like! However, without the worry about weather, lengthy plane delays, travel time or having to actually jump out of a plane!

Is it scary?
It’s really exciting and challenging, but we wouldn’t call indoor skydiving scary. You don’t have to leap off anything and there’s no sensation of falling or anything that could make you feel motion sickness. We really do recommend anyone to try it!

I’m not knocking anyone wanting to try this — I don’t like heights and have no interest in jumping out of a plane, but do you get the point?

If there’s a way we can suck risk out of opportunity and turn it into either a comfort or an entertainment, we do it! We want the reward of risk and opportunity without the work or threat of the unknown. In short, if we can’t manipulate an opportunity into something that is safe, comfortable, or fun, we’ll often pass on it. And we do this in most areas of our lives — in business opportunities, personal relationships, and even in our spiritual lives. Instead of being bold and embracing opportunities, we’re more like this farmer …

“Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest,” Ecclesiastes 11:4.

A farmer who always waits for the perfect conditions to plant a crop will never plant a crop!

So what should we do? We’ll have to learn to take some risks …

“Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things. Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another — or maybe both,” Ecclesiastes 11:5-6.

To have that fully rich and satisfying life Jesus wants for you (John 10:10) will at times (many times!) require you to take a real leap a faith, something that cannot be simulated, something that may not be comfortable, and something that may be risky. But it comes with a reward that cannot be imitated or duplicated.

Scotty