In 2005 we took a senior mission trip to Europe. There were four seniors, with me and my wife
as sponsors. It was just as cheap to fly
out of Chattanooga as it was to drive to Atlanta and pay for parking for 2
weeks, so we flew out of Chattanooga thru Atlanta to Amsterdam, our final
destination. But Chattanooga is so close
to Atlanta that Atlanta air traffic control wouldn’t let the flight leave
Chattanooga until there was a landing slot in Atlanta. Our flight was delayed twice, but finally
took off. So, when we landed in Atlanta,
our connecting flight to Amsterdam had already left. Bummer.
But as we stood at the ticket counter, our delay turned into excitement
for the kids. Since the delay was caused
by Delta’s scheduling, it was their responsibility to get us to Amsterdam one
way or another. The ticket agent was
thinking out loud, “Well, I could put you through Zurich, (the kids got
excited) but there aren’t enough seats.”
Then the agent said, “I could get you to London, (more excitement) but
the connection from London to Amsterdam is no good.” These teenagers had never been out of the
country and were excited at the prospects of seeing an extra European city,
even if it was only for a couple of hours.
To the kids’ delight, we ended up going through Paris. Delta made good on their promise to get us to
our final destination safe and sound.
Hey, often we have delays and side trips in life. Some delays are exciting but other delays are
fearful. Often, life doesn’t turn out
exactly how you had planned it. But God
has promised to get you to heaven safe and sound. That is His responsibility, and one that He
takes seriously. Paul said it best in
Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun
a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” You can trust God to see you safely through
to your final destination: your eternal home.
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