God, Snow, and Airplanes
I got on the plane. Terrible seat! Sandwich seat! No legroom! The lady next to me was already opening her smelly food. “Sorry about the food,” she said. “It’s okay,” I responded. In a few minutes a man came up and said, “You are sitting in my seat.” I checked my ticket. No, I was sitting in the right seat. I looked at his ticket. Sure enough, it was his seat too. I gave him the seat and told him I would find a different one. The flight attendant sprang into action. He walked me to the back of the plane. I saw an empty seat on the exit row (I call them “economy first class”) “I can just sit here,” I told him. He would not let me. He took me off the plane, telling me I would have to wait to see what was available. I went all the way to the gate and watched them assign seats to others. Outside was the snow was falling hard (eventually 12 inches). I was afraid I might be trapped at the airport. Finally they gave me a ticket. I walked to my new seat. It was the exit row and the aisle seat. Wonderful! We pushed away from the gate at 1:30 and took off at 3:45 (deicing).
Sometimes life does not go as you planned. When you have little hiccups along the way it is easy to be frustrated and angry. It is better to decide that God’s hand is in the details. When Israel left Egypt and headed to the Promised Land, the Bible tells us:
“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, ‘If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.’ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.” – Exodus 13: 17 – 18,
There was a quicker route, but God knew they needed to take the long way. He gave them what was best and not what they might have wanted. God still works that way, even when the snow is falling and you are getting on a plane.
As we were sitting on the tarmac, the captain walked back and talked to our row and apologized for the long delay. I spoke up and said, “We’re okay. We are sitting here reading books and relaxing. We do not have to fret with small children. We’ll be okay.” He smiled and went to talk with others. As long as we keep God in our plans, God will work things out for the good. (Romans 8:28).
Lonnie Davis