If you don't trust the pilot, don't go.

Hear, O seekers of wisdom, the words of Denzel Washington, a man not only of stage and screen but of insight into the paths of life: “If you don’t trust the pilot, don’t go.” Though spoken in the simple image of flight, these words carry the weight of deep discernment. For the pilot is more than one who steers a plane—it is the leader you follow, the teacher you heed, the guide you entrust with your destiny. To step onto the journey of life under a pilot you do not trust is to surrender your fate into uncertain hands.

What is trust, but the bridge between your will and another’s? When you enter a plane, you do not steer; you surrender control. The pilot becomes your guardian, your protector, your decision-maker. So too in the greater journeys of life: in marriage, in leadership, in friendship, in faith. If you cannot trust the one who leads, then better not to begin the journey, lest the path end in ruin. Washington’s words are both warning and counsel: be careful whom you entrust with your future, for the journey is long and the stakes are high.

Consider the fate of the Trojan people, who once welcomed a wooden horse into their gates. They trusted in the gift of their enemies, believing it safe. But their leaders, failing to discern wisely, became false pilots, and the city was destroyed from within. Had they not boarded that figurative flight, had they questioned the trust they placed, their walls might have stood. So history teaches us: misplaced trust is more dangerous than open conflict, for it blinds you until disaster is too near to escape.

Yet the opposite is also true: great journeys have succeeded because men trusted the right pilot. Think of the expedition of Lewis and Clark, who, though strangers to the vast lands before them, placed their trust in Sacagawea, a young Shoshone woman who became their guide and interpreter. She was their pilot through rivers, mountains, and unknown territories. Because they trusted her, they survived and triumphed. Trust in the right pilot transforms fear into confidence, uncertainty into discovery.

O children of tomorrow, mark this lesson: you must not follow every voice that calls itself leader, nor every hand that claims to guide. Examine carefully the character of the pilot—is he wise, is he steady, is he tested in storms? Does he inspire confidence not by words alone, but by proven deeds? For a pilot unworthy of trust will endanger all who follow, while a pilot of integrity will carry you safely through the skies of trial.

The teaching is clear: if your heart is troubled, if doubts persist, if every sign warns against placing your trust in a certain guide, then heed the warning. Do not go. Better to wait, better to seek another way, than to entrust your life to one unworthy. For once the plane has taken off, once the path is chosen, escape is no longer easy. Prevention is wisdom, discernment is safety, and patience is often the greater courage.

Practical action lies here: in your life, choose carefully whom you follow—whether leaders, friends, or causes. Test their character before entrusting your journey to them. Do not be swayed by charm or noise; seek instead wisdom, steadiness, and truth. And likewise, when you yourself are placed as the pilot for others, remember the weight of that role. Be trustworthy, be steady, be humble. For the lives of others may depend upon your hand.

So let the words of Denzel Washington echo in your heart: “If you don’t trust the pilot, don’t go.” Let them be your compass in all choices of loyalty and leadership. For trust is the wind that lifts the wings of every journey. Without it, no voyage is safe; with it, even the storm can be endured.