--- id: flying-free-19-trials-can-lead-to-victory title: Chapter 19 – Trials Can Lead to Victory category: Personal Testimony predicted_narrative_arc: Crisis to transformation sentiment: Hopeful emotions: - faith - struggle - resilience - hope keypoints: - Cancer diagnosis at 43 during business growth and recession - Trials viewed as timed opportunities for new life - Aviation instrument flight as metaphor for faith in crisis - Romans 6:4 on burial with Christ and living new life - Need to decide faith in advance of trouble - God surprises with opportunities when past burdens are released summary: Dean recounts his cancer diagnosis at age 43 amid business expansion, family responsibilities, and economic downturn, framing the crisis as an unexpected opportunity for a new life through faith rather than punishment. He draws parallels between relying on aircraft instruments in clouds and trusting God when external references are lost, citing Romans 6:4 and Jeremiah 29:11. The chapter emphasizes that trials can prepare one to fly free of past burdens if faith is chosen as the primary guide. tags: - childhood - family - faith - work - testing - warmth - conviction - cancer-journey - faith-in-trials - instrument-flight - new-life - romans-6-4 - aviation-metaphor - romans-6 - personal-story sycophancy: 1 truth_score: 9 entropy: 4 updated: '2026-09-08T20:49:32Z' vault_stage: 07_CODEX headwaters: COMPA prefix: COMPA enrich_status: ok enrich_blockers: [] enrich_method: llm pipeline_filename: COMPA_2026-09-08_chapter-19-trials-can-lead-to-victory.md proposed_topic: Stories lane: Stories description: Cancer at 43 was the worst possible timing — until Dean realized God was offering him a new life. This chapter shows how trials become building blocks when met with faith. corpus_topic: Stories --- # Chapter 19 ## Trials Can Lead to Victory – Look Beyond the Horizon **Full book:** https://deanrush.net/downloads/flyingfreebook.md --- ### Context for the Reader This chapter returns to Dean’s personal cancer journey and connects it to the larger theme of the book: trials are not punishments — they are preparation. The powerful line from Jeremiah 29:11 anchors the message that God’s plans are for good even when the immediate circumstances feel like disaster. --- We all have stories of how personal trials in life have led to stress. One of my personal trials was a diagnosis that I had a very serious form of cancer when I was forty-three years old. The timing was terrible for me and my family. Poor timing for a crisis always seems to be the case, doesn’t it? When you are hindered by the loss of a job or a personal tragedy you never feel comfortable with the timing. There is little you can do to change circumstances so there is always a moment when you say, “What do I do now?” Rarely do we feel that we may actually be given an opportunity to change our lives for the positive when a crisis strikes. We do not expect positive benefits during those times so we often ignore the chances for change. I can now attest to that fact from my personal experience. When you experience a tough situation, you need to realize there may be an opportunity for progress hidden somewhere inside the problem that can lead you to a new direction in life. Finding the path to take you to a new way of living is often a matter of timing. Your problem may be timed to allow you to fly free of the burdens of the past. My experience has shown me that God has a way of surprising us with opportunities. Sometimes we recognize only what we can see or feel. He has a whole new life prepared for us if we will take advantage of the moment. Paul says in Romans 6:4 (NIV), “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” Paul is talking to anyone who will listen that they can have a new life through Christ, and he is speaking to people who believed they were not qualified for a new life. The people he was writing to were so concentrated on the past that they were not looking forward. Christ offers an opportunity to rid yourself of the burdens of the past and move forward. It is really the last part of that verse that says, “…we too may live a new life” that really hits home. He is talking to all of us who believe that the secular world will help us out of a crisis. Christ, through Paul’s writing, is saying He will provide a new opportunity if we will believe. He becomes even more specific in Romans where it is further simplified. It is a two-part experience. First, we must have faith; and secondly, we must accept the new life. There is nothing complicated—it is the same whether for a pilot, teacher, or pauper. When I was told about my cancer I was in the midst of expanding a business, being a father, and trying to make ends meet financially. I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders. My health difficulties were also occurring as the economy was taking a downturn. All elements worked together to drive me deeper into a depression that essentially required me to understand I was not in charge. To be honest, I did not handle the whole situation well because I did not realize that God was doing exactly what that verse in Romans was all about—I was being offered a new life. As a pilot, when you doubt your instruments it is easy to lose control. Faith provides the same assistance to us when we believe in God. Without it I was losing control. One of the toughest assignments for a pilot in the clouds is to understand what is real and what is imagined when referencing the instruments in the cockpit. When you are flying in the clouds with no reference to your relationship to the ground, you have no choice except to rely on the instruments to keep the airplane right side up. You must maintain faith in the indicators that will help you safely move forward toward your intended destination. As you concentrate on the instrument panel and there is no reference outside the cockpit, you can imagine all kinds of scenarios. To be a successful instrument pilot you must have faith in the instruments. To be successful in life when outside inputs are taken from your view and you feel completely alone, you have to have faith in God. He is your instrument to keep you on the straight and level through your bad times. You must determine before a crisis occurs that your faith will be the primary instrument you can use to carry you through any problem. Faith is important if you are going to believe you can successfully endure your problem. In the airplane it is essential to develop that trust in the gauges because they provide the necessary information to get you home when you are cut off from the normal references that you use for maneuvering. The same trust has to be developed in your faith to help you regain a level of normalcy in life when you are in the midst of a problem. The feeling you have when going through a crisis may not be exactly one of high confidence, but if you rely on your training and your trust, you can safely get back to a secure life. As a pilot I had to believe that the instruments were telling me the truth and then react to the information they provided to guide the airplane. My life and the lives of my passengers literally depended upon the correct interpretation of that information. When flying, it became necessary to understand what I could and could not realistically do as a pilot. There is always a great difference between what we want to do and what is reality. Your correct interpretation of the signals God is providing you in a crisis may also provide you with the ability to get to a safe landing. Your faith that Christ died for your sins is the primary instrument to verify the strength of your conviction. Paul actually says that it is simple. “If you believe in your heart and say with your mouth that Christ died for your sins, you will be saved.” Many years ago I wanted to become an astronaut and fly in space. I tried to work through some of the required steps to reach that goal. I attended the schools, the training, and even sacrificed some other opportunities because of my desire to fly in space. It was a great dream but there was a problem. Most of the candidates who were kept in the space program (I was eliminated with a government budget cut) had scientific backgrounds, and I was a good pilot but not a scientist. NASA needed scientists in the spacecraft and not just someone who could fly the machine. NASA determined there were better qualified candidates to fill the flying positions. My résumé did not say I would make the best astronaut. When I looked at the situation objectively rather than from my personal disappointment, it became apparent that there were others better qualified to fly in space. When I was objective about the situation I had to agree with their assessment. Later I realized that if I had remained in that program I would never have really gotten started in the aviation business that I have loved so much. God’s plan was for me put my faith in Him and His plan, not mine. Years later I realized that His plan was for me to use those experiences to help others reach their goals. Teach yourself to have faith that you are going to be able to use your experiences for God’s purpose and know that He is in control. His goals are much more real and greater than yours. I flew more than 200 combat missions in Vietnam and realized early on that there was only one way to survive. I had to come to grips with myself and decide what I could and could not do with the airplane. I had to be totally truthful with myself and sometimes that was not easy to do. There were times when I wanted to do something that I may have seen in a movie but realistically knew could not be done in the real combat environment. What is the truth and how do you come to divide truth from a dream? The trials I experienced in combat were not too different than the ones I discovered were tormenting me later at home. There was a requirement to find the best method of working through the problem realistically and then gaining knowledge from the experience. The trials eventually provided experience, which I could use later to find a victory. Let’s look at what you can do to find the truth so you can take proper action in your personal situation. You may feel like you are in combat with a situation you are experiencing right now. Just as in real combat, you must determine the truth about what is happening before you can resolve your situation. A second and equally important action is to find opportunities to get out of the crisis. To do that you must accept help wherever it might be available. There are times when millions of Americans experience job loss due a downturn in the economy or their industry. They may be laid off or are involved in a failing business because of the business environment in their area of the country. Once you enter the crisis mode you must work on the quickest method of moving through it to calm air and a calmer life. God can help us do that and stands ready if you call upon Him. When I was diagnosed with cancer, one of the first truths I had to accept was that the disease was present in my body. I had to deal with the problem. There were no billboards that appeared before me that said I was going to experience a downturn in my ability to operate as I had in the past. There was no immediate sign of any change except for a loss of appetite and weight loss. I knew the illness was present because the doctors said I had cancer and my body was displaying some of the signals that accompany the disease. It was then that I began to rely on something much larger than myself. I realized I was not in control of the situation so I placed my faith in the God, who I believed could pull me through the ordeal. He did exactly what I had prayed for and healed me. The healing did not take place overnight and involved the expertise of some great medical personnel who used their gifts of healing to provide me the opportunity to go on with my life. I believe God put every person in that chain of events in my life for a purpose. I was not healed because I was a good person or more deserving than others. I believe I was healed because God had a purpose in providing the healing so that I could do what I am doing now with my life. The fact that God placed opportunities in front of me during this time of my life was evidence to me that He wanted me to go forward. Each step in the recovery process provided hope. When I realized there was hope for recovery I began diligently following every suggestion that the doctors provided to accelerate the healing process. Through the faith provided by God and the professional medical technology provided by the doctors I saw my life changing from hopelessness to an opportunity for a future. God was providing new opportunities to live and fly free of my disease and the health problems that had seemed so egregious. Through faith and His leading I was able to find new hope in the midst of the crisis. Later He used that faith to provide victory over the disease that entangled my mind, my body, and my business. All I had to do was follow His plan and use my faith. I strongly recommend you work on developing a faith that will allow you to take advantage of your moment of healing as well. The trials of life can become building blocks that lead to an escape from turmoil. After escaping there will be a method of building for the future. God also has a purpose for your life. “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen.’” Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) --- **Next chapter:** A Moment to Act – Use Faith **Full book:** https://deanrush.net/downloads/flyingfreebook.md