What Do the Blue Angels and Prayer Have in Common?

I recently watched a documentary on the Blue Angles, the Navy’s flight demonstration squadron. I have a love for this group that goes back to my childhood in Seattle. Every year during Seafair, my mother would make sure we went to Lake Washington to watch the Blue Angels perform. We would find a place where their show takes them closest to the ground. It felt that if my arms were just a little bit longer, I could touch their wings. The rumble of the engines and feeling the rush of air as they passed overhead is forever etched in my memory. The documentary was about how they make that magic happen.

As I was preparing a team for praying at a conference. Most of the people in the room had gone through this training in previous years when it occurred to me that we were like the Blue Angels. As we reviewed the guidelines for prayer with others, I saw a picture in my mind of the lead pilot, slowly reading through the complete flight plan in the hours before they were going to fly. I was struck with how important it is to be ready to go into a prayer session with everyone prepared – to practice, practice, practice – like the Blue Angels who spend long hours together training. They hang-out with each other in their off-hours. The goal is to be able to think and move as a unit, to trust each other with their lives. I love the imagery of this in my faith walk. Spending time with God practicing spiritual disciplines prepares me for the daily journey with Him. However, hanging out with God just for the joy of it, is equally important. My ability to trust Him grows, allowing me to think as He thinks and see the world the way He sees it. We turn into a team that does amazing things.

I want the guidelines to be second nature, so that I can be completely in-tune with what God is doing right in front of me. I want to be keyed into His voice, His commands. I want to be so in sync with His movement that I’m in the right places at the right times, even when it feels death-defying. It’s exhilarating – my happy place.

In that space, I’ve seen bodies healed. I’ve seen people tormented by regrets and anger set free. I’ve seen people transformed to the point that they step into their true destinies. It’s the fulfillment of both Luke 4:17-19 and Matthew 10:7-8:

(Luke 4:17-19 New American Standard Bible)
And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

And

(Matthew 10:7-8 New American Standard Bible)
And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.

I know that this only comes with practice, sometimes failure, and the ability to own up to the times when I’m out of sync, which is also something that the Blue Angles do at the end of each flight. They debrief with each other and look for places where they can improve. I feel that this is an area often left out of prayer teams, but it’s important. None of us gets it right one hundred percent of the time, but when we have others around us helping us to think through the process, we can improve and grow in our ability to be in the middle of what God is doing.

The Blue Angels have a saying when they are debriefing: “Glad to be here.” That is how I feel when I’m praying for others, so glad to be the person God is using to show someone else how much He loves them. It’s a privilege that deserves my full commitment to the process. I encourage you to fly strong and safe with God.