The Blunders of Fools
The Stealth bomber (which was for years, the Air Force’s most top secret flying marvel) was designed with a “mathematical error”. This bit of information was laughingly announced to my husband and me by our newly graduated, chemical-engineer son. He was in the process of pursuing his Master’s Degree, when he came across the article in a l989 report of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, proving this fact.
“Can you imagine that?” he continued. “Something that costs billions of dollars to build ends up being the worst design possible instead of the best”. At this point his laughter not only showed his disbelief, but his eyes displayed feelings of incredibility that a mistake of this magnitude could have been missed.
Arousing my interest, I prodded further. “How did THAT happen?”
“Evidently, it was kept so top secret that there were only two engineers working on the project,” he stated, “and neither one of them caught the mistake.”
Not much accountability, I thought, for a project of such magnitude.
My son continued his explanation. “These two aerodynamicists, when calculating the maximum and minimum values for the ratio of total volume to wing volume accidentally REVERSED the correct answer!”
At this point his laughter was on the verge of hysteria. “How stupid!” he added, “the maximum was in fact the minimum. In other words, the “flying wing” (as was the Stealth bomber’s design) was the aerodynamically WORST possible choice of configuration (in laymen’s terms, arrangement of parts or form).
My finite mind could not fully grasp his explanation, yet my curiosity had been aroused, as I detected a great spiritual lesson to be learned here. So I read my son’s copied article myself.
It seems that these two engineers were working for the company that was the prime contractor for the Stealth bomber. I noted, also, that a third, “outside” engineer, who was also an emeritus professor at a university, when he heard of the proposed design, questioned its viability. He, too, had been doing research on improving the speed, altitude and range of bomber planes but had come to the opposite conclusion concerning the effect of an “all wing” design. When he shared his conclusions with his two counterparts, they “vehemently” disagreed. (“A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may devour itself” – Prov. 18:2).
It wasn’t until later, after much time and expense had already been invested in the Stealth bomber project, that the original research was made public. After carefully analyzing the data, the third, dissenting engineer found the mistake. (“Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools” – Rom. 1:22).
How “human” man is, yet how like “God” he sometimes wants to appear. Until a man can recognize that he is a sinner, he can never know the Savior. True knowledge can never be attained without Our Lord’s Wisdom!
While studying the life of King Asa, this truth really hit home. King Asa had started his reign as a truly godly king. “And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God” (II Chron. 14:2). And he “commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their father” (II Chron. 14:4). As long as he did so, God prospered him.
On one particular occasion, Asa found himself and his kingdom far outnumbered by the Ethiopians and in danger of being overcome by them. It was at this point that he put his faith to the test and cried out to the Lord his God saying, “Lord, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power; help us, O Lord our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O Lord, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee” (II Chron. 14:11).
King Asa knew the source of his protection and strength. He made it a point to seek the Lord before venturing out into “new territory”. As homeschooling moms it is imperative that we, also, begin, not only our initial homeschooling venture seeking the Lord’s Will, but that each year thereafter is also bathed in prayer.
Each year as circumstances change, situations arise, and new opportunities present themselves, we need to reevaluate our goals and purpose for homeschooling. As we seek to implement and direct the studies for each of our children, we need to pray specifically for wisdom from The Lord for ourselves, to be able to guide each child into the path that the Lord has for him or her. As parents, charged by God, Himself, with the responsibility of “training our children in the way that they should go”, this is a monumental task that cannot be fully achieved without Godly wisdom.
As we truly endeavor to seek the Lord’s will, we can be encouraged, as Asa was, by the words of the prophet, Azariah: “The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you” (II Chron. 15: 2). And again, Asa’s confidence is fostered by the words: “Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak; for your work shall be rewarded” (II Chon. 15: 7).
How many times do we waste time and money when we try this new curriculum or that new approach without having consulted our “HeadMaster”? We wonder why it doesn’t work, or the promised results are not achieved, resulting in a struggle with discouragement.
Unfortunately, in the latter part of Asa’s life, when he was again faced with opposition from his enemy, rather than turn to the Lord, he sought aid from a neighboring king. He was severely rebuked by Hanani, the seer, saying, “thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and not relied on the Lord thy God….herein thou hast done foolishly” (II Chron.16:7,9). The results were devastating, yet Asa still did not learn from his foolishness. Later still in life, this once wise king was “diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceedingly great: yet in his disease he sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians” (II Chron. 16:12).
As homeschooling mothers, we need always to remember that it was GOD who called us into this homeschooling venture, and it is GOD who will sustain us! He gave us courage and direction as we took that first step into the unchartered waters of homeschooling. And he promises to continue to be with us if we give HIM the glory and seek HIS perfect Will for our children. “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him” (II Chron. 16:9). Let us strive to not ever let our guard down, and rely on our own wisdom or that of well-meaning friends. While advice from fellow-homeschoolers can be good and often needed, it should be carefully weighed in prayer as to its suitability for our own family.
Remember the two engineers of the Stealth bomber, who refused to consult another or to listen to the concerns of someone who “knew better”. Their “blunder” resulted in a design that never did achieve the proposed range or bomb load. Let that not happen to us when we forget to seek the Lord. At the end of the homeschooling road, our goal should be children who are all they can be for the Lord, because we, as mothers, sought His Face. Unlike the failure of the Stealth bomber, may our children attain the “range and payload” that The Lord intended for their lives. And remember Asa in his latter days who, when encountering future decisions, FORGOT what the Lord had already done . . . And blundered, too!
Through prayer, let us always continue to do “good and right, in the eyes of the Lord, our God”; and seek to continually give God the glory!
Maribeth Spangenberg is a homeschool mother of nine, whom she and her husband, Steve, have always educated at home. Her three oldest children have graduated from homeschool highschool. She continues to teach her remaining children at home.
