Who’s the guy that writes in the sky? I’m not the only person who has asked that question. His writings can be seen for 50-60 miles on a clear day and they’re meant to deliver a message.
My curiosity got the best of me a couple weeks ago, so I reached out to a local airport to see if we could meet. Today was that day.
He flies a yellow, 1975 Grumman Ag Cat, aka “Holy Smoke”. An old crop duster, the AG stands for Agriculture. Born and raised in Ohio he fell in love with flying, and at age 16, he started lessons. At 23 he bought his first plane and since then has owned 29 of them.
In the late 70’s he moved from Cleveland to Florida and kept flying as his hobby while working in the retail industry. It wasn’t until 13-14 years ago that flying began to lose his interest – he was ready to hang it up.
Spending his entire life as a follower of Jesus Christ he began to seek his purpose. He wanted God to use his talents in whatever way He saw fit. He prayed and listened until one day the answer was delivered. He referenced God’s answer to be as clear as the conversation we were having – God wanted Jerry Stevens to deliver messages in the sky.
Unsure if it was his imagination leading him down this path he asked for a sign. Once again his faith delivered an answer. During a visit to his church on a Monday he found a choir performing (which was untraditional). He picked up the bulletin and on one of the hymns it read “and fill the skies with His praises”.
Flying at 10,500 feet up in the air, messages like “God + U = :-)” or “Jesus Loves You” and many more span the sky. The messages themselves are 7 miles long!
While interviewing Jerry, there was not one moment he didn’t place Christ in front of everything. Honoring himself for doing what he does was like trying to honor the quill pen for writing the Declaration of Independence. He gives all credit for everything to Jesus Christ.
He has a variety of messages that are written in the sky, but the decision of what message will go up that day comes from the prayer he prays before taking off.
Before I left, he said something to me. He said, “You know, a lot of people make it difficult to keep ‘God’ in school and in other places. Now His messages are up in the sky for all to see. In one way or another, God will always find a way to share His message.”
