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Life is fragile and it can be taken in a blink of an eye. Have you ever asked the question “What if I died, where would I go?“

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What Is My Purpose In Life?

The Canadian Forces took me, Major Wes Bowers, around the world.

I was raised by Christian parents, but when it came time to make my own decision to believe in Jesus Christ, I have to admit, I cut corners. I really only took out the “proverbial fire insurance salvation policy.” I believed only because it would get me to heaven. I didn’t really care for a relationship with God. I didn’t recognize Jesus as the Lord of my life. Instead, I began to move gradually further and further from what my parents taught me.

Fortunately, before going too far down that road, I married a Christian girl.

But as I continued my education and then moved into the workforce, I started to forget about God. I began a career as a teacher after finishing university, but the lure of a life of travel, adventure, and excitement changed my plans and I joined the Canadian Forces in 1973 and received pilot training.

The wake-up call

Three years into my flying career I made another change in my life, but this time the consequences would be eternal.

During a routine flight over a remote region of Ontario, the weather turned sour and I decided I needed to land my helicopter immediately. But I quickly realized I was trapped in a steep-walled valley with increasing clouds and pouring rain. The helicopter I was flying was not properly equipped to fly in cloud so I had to remain within sight of the ground. To make matters worse, I was rapidly running out of daylight and there was no safe landing area to be found.

I thought to myself, I could die here! I had a strange sense of being “one step from eternity.” Yet, I did not feel prepared to stand before God after I died and give an account of my life. And now finally, God had my attention.

It all comes home when you have a test in your life. Alone and in the tiny cockpit of my helicopter, I made a decision that would change the course of my life: I turned my situation over to the Lord, whether I lived or died was up to him. I said out loud to God, “Lord, I realize I don’t have the right to ask you for any favors. But if you give me a second chance and show me the way out, this time I promise to follow your leadership.”

Saved

God heard my prayer and gave me a chance to prove my sincerity. Suddenly, and inexplicably, my anxiety left and I felt quite calm as I placed my life in God’s hands. As I continued to circle the valley, strangely, the sky seemed less dark in one area and I somehow felt drawn to fly in that direction.

I managed to navigate out of the valley and ended up landing at the nearest farm. When I landed I did two things: I thanked God for saving my life and then I told him I would need his help to keep my part of the deal.

Things gradually began to change in my life after that day and my concept of trusting God began to grow. And for this military officer and his wife Gail these changes were long overdue.

The importance of family

Some military men have a tendency to value their military career more than their wife and children. I had to learn how to talk to my wife and how to love my wife better. It’s a significant task to build a marriage and family. I’ve learned that you’re in it together.

I also decided that spending Friday evenings at the bar with my pilot friends until late at night was not healthy for my marriage and family. It was a struggle for me to give that up, but I realized that I would have to choose to follow God’s leadership on a daily basis and this was what was best for my family and me. God gave me the power to change.

Today, Gail and I have been married for almost 40 years and we take joy in spending time with our grandchildren.

Content with life

After 20 years of flying for the Canadian Forces, I retired from active duty in 1993. I returned to academic life for a time and attended seminary.

In 1995 I joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ and began working in the Leadership Ministry. I currently work in the TruthMedia Internet Ministry, taking the gospel message to people around the world through the Internet. For Major Wes Bowers, this is the ultimate promotion. I’ve gone from being a Peacekeeper to working for the Prince of Peace.

What about you?

My life experience has taught me that drifting away from God is harmful to one’s self-worth as well as to relationships with family, friends and co-workers. I wish I knew then, what I know now—the key to a growing sense of fulfillment and a sense of purpose in life is to learn how life-changing it can be to follow God’s leadership through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. 

If you know, like I do, that you need changes in your life, you can ask God to change you today. God gave his only Son Jesus Christ to us. Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins—every time we’ve lied, stolen, cheated, hated…the list goes on. After three days, Jesus rose from the dead. He offers us complete forgiveness and the gift of grace. We just need to believe in him. You can know God personally. Ask, by faith, for Jesus Christ to take control of your life and he will do as he promised. If you don’t already know Jesus, I encourage you to pray the following:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive you as my Savior and Lord. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of my life. Make me be the person you want me to be. Amen.

Is it the desire of your heart to make this prayer yours? If yes, pray now and according to his promise, Jesus Christ will come into your life.

The Canadian Forces took Major Wes Bowers around the world.

Wes is now retired and living in Cloverdale, British Columbia. He traded his military wings for a second career with Campus Crusade for Christ and enjoys sharing his journey of faith.

Wes was raised by Christian parents, but when it came time to make his own decision for Christ, he admits that he cut corners. “I really only took out the proverbial ‘fire insurance salvation policy.” “I didn’t recognize Jesus as the Lord of my life,” Wes recalls. “Instead, I began to move gradually further and further from what my parents taught me.” Fortunately, before going too far down that road, Wes married a Christian girl.

However, as he continued his education and then moved into the workforce, Wes grew more distant from God. He began a career as a teacher after finishing university, but the lure of a life of travel, adventure, and excitement changed his plans and he joined the Canadian Forces in 1973 and received pilot training.

Three years into his flying career Wes made another change in his life, but this time the consequences would be eternal. During a routine flight over a remote region of Ontario, the weather turned sour and Wes decided he needed to land his helicopter immediately. But he quickly realized he was virtually trapped in a steep-walled valley with increasing clouds and pouring rain. To make matters worse, he was rapidly running out of daylight and there was no safe landing area to be found.

Wes thought to himself, “I could die here!” He had a strange sense of being, “One step from eternity.” And now finally, God had his attention.

“It all comes home when you have a test in your life,” Wes says. Alone and in the tiny cockpit of his helicopter, Wes made a decision that would change the course of his life. “I turned my situation over to the Lord, whether I lived or died.” He said out loud to God, “Lord, I realize I don’t have the right to ask you for any favours. But if you give me a second chance and show me the way out, this time I promise to follow your leadership.”

The Lord heard his prayer and gave Wes a chance to prove his sincerity. After a few more nervous minutes of continuing to circle the valley, the clouds seemed less dark in one direction. He took his chance and followed it.

Wes describes what happened next. “I managed to navigate out of the valley and ended up landing at the nearest farm. And when I landed I did two things. I thanked God for saving my life and then I told Him I would need His help to keep my part of the deal.”

Things gradually began to change in Wes’ life after that day and his concept of trusting God began to grow. And for this military officer and his wife Gail these changes were long overdue.

“Some military men have a tendency to value their military career more than their wife and children,” Wes explains. “I had to learn how to talk to my wife and how to better love my wife. It’s a significant task to build a marriage and family. I’ve learned that you’re in it together.”

Wes also decided that spending Friday evenings at the bar with his pilot friends until late at night was not healthy for his marriage and family. “It was a struggle for me,” he admits. “But God gave me the power to change.”

After 20 years of flying for the Canadian Forces, Major Wes Bowers retired from active duty in 1993. He returned to academic life for a time and attended seminary.

In 1995 Wes joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ and began working in Leadership Ministry and later worked on The JESUS Film Project, taking the Gospel message to countries around the world. For Major Wes Bowers, this is the ultimate promotion. “I’ve gone from being a Peacekeeper to working for the Prince of Peace, ” Wes proudly declares. Wes and Gail have been married for over 35 years and have their first grandchild.

Wes adds these comments:

“My life experience has taught me that drifting away from God is harmful to one’s self-worth as well as to relationships with family, friends and co-workers.  I wish I knew then, what I know now: that the key to a growing sense of fulfillment and a sense of purpose in life is to learn how to live the Spirit-filled life.”

If you know, like Wes, that you need changes in your life, you can ask God to change you today. Ask, by faith, for Jesus Christ to take control of your life again and He will do as He promised.  Here is a suggested prayer…

Dear Father, I need you. I acknowledge that I have sinned against you by directing my own life. I thank you that You have forgiven my sins through Christ’s death on the cross for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life. Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I pray this in the name of Jesus. As an expression of my faith, I thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Throughout history the strongest men of the land were often recruited into armies. The giant, Goliath of the Philistines, was such a man. But then along came a shepherd boy named David with a slingshot, and soon the giant lay dead, proving strength is relative.

Weapons and strength

Weapons are a “force multiplier” of human strength. With a weapon, the question of “who is more powerful” is not confined to men.

The character behind the weapon

Weapons can be used for good or evil. The good or evil is not inherent in the weapon but in the character of the user.

D. L. Moody said, “Character is what you are in the dark.” What Moody meant by this is that character is what you really are when no one is looking, not the cover-up that you allow others to see. Character is what guides your actions and produces the words you speak. Character is your unique identity, your personality, the sum total of your individual characteristics.

Character can be good or bad. Strength of character refers to the strong and good character. A person strong in character is someone who stands for what is right, who has the “backbone” to express and live out his convictions.

What are the qualities that make up good character? These include honesty, integrity, devotion, self-discipline, determination, dependability, perseverance, conscientiousness, patience, and a strong work ethic. A person with right character does what he says, and says what he does. His reputation is solid. He respects himself, his family, and his nation. (The Marketing Center)

Additional characteristics of good character can be found in the Bible. They are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal 5:22-23)

Character shaping

Anyone who has ever raised children is able to look at a list of character qualities and recognize that good or strong character is not something that we are born with. Young children tell lies, are impatient and self-centred, have a short attention span and would rather just play than do chores.

Character has to be shaped. When we are children, the shaping comes from the key influencers around us: parents, extended family, teachers, and those outside the family. But if the parents are lacking in character and they allow other shady characters to influence their children, the children’s character will reflect that.

My character was shaped by a number of experiences and one great influence. Though raised in a Christian home, I questioned the Christian faith. While piloting a helicopter in a heavy storm one evening with no safe place to land, I suddenly became aware that my life could end in a flash and a bang. That was when I knew I had to choose what and who I was going to live my life for. When I was in control of my own life, my life became out of control. I knew that only with God in control of my life would I become a man of strong character—the man I wanted to be.

What about you?

I learned I had to draw on a power beyond myself in order to be transformed. This power is in Jesus Christ, God’s own son who died on the cross for my sins, for my wrongs, for the times my bad character hurt others and myself. Jesus rose from the dead after three days and offers eternal life and a relationship with God. I accepted that gift of freedom from God.

If you believe in Jesus and accept him as your Savior, you accept his gift of grace and can come to a personal relationship with God. He has a perfect plan for your life and he has a place for you in heaven.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as he is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

D. L. Moody said, “Character is what you are in the dark.”

What Moody meant by this is that character is what you really are when no one is looking, not the cover-up that you allow others to see. Character is what guides your actions and produces the words you speak. Character is your unique identity, your personality, the sum total of your individual characteristics.

Read more of this article by Wes Bowers about strength, character and “the man behind the weapon”.

How would you define character? What about strength? Is being powerful important?