Drop Fifty-Three

Philippians 2:14-16

“Do all things without grumbling or disputing; so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain” (NASB1995).

Recently, I had quite the travel experience. The first leg of my trip was anticipated to be nine  hours (not minutes, HOURS) late. It was supposed to leave four hours from the time I received the notification. One (1) hour from the time of the text, there was another option in a nearby town scheduled to leave. So, my journey began three hours early rather than nine hours behind. Well, two hours early, because that mode ended up being delayed by one hour due to unforeseen circumstances. From then on everything was on time. Until the last leg of the trip. Due to a mechanical delay, I arrived forty minutes late. The return trip home was not much better. Yes, the first leg was ON TIME!! However, the second leg was so delayed (7.5 hours) that I gave up the wait. Another that had been waiting over 12 hours insisted on driving and I agreed to accompany as we were heading to the same general area.

Yes, I could have been upset. However, having once worked in the travel industry, I chose to approach the delays as God designed. Trusting that each delay, each leg of the trip would provide opportunities to interact with others and represent the Lord well maintained a sense of calm within me. So many blessings I could have missed had I allowed myself to be consumed with emotions. Still unpacking the blessings.

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for all the ways in which You weave the tapestry of our lives. May we, as followers of Christ, shine brightly in this darkened world. May we prayerfully start each day seeking to serve You well.

In Jesus’ name we pray,

AMEN