Scott, Marleigh, and I just had the privilege to go to Poland and serve some of our "global partners" (you may know these folks by another word that begins with the letter "m") by providing childcare for their children during the annual General Meeting. Some of our team coordinated VBS with the older children, and then there were those of us who spent time playing with the younger children. It was a blast...and a blessing to be in the midst of these brothers and sisters in Christ.
Prior to the trip, I had begun a Bible study by Priscilla Shirer entitled "One in a Million". It is a study based on the Exodus account of the Israelites wandering in the desert and after 40 years making it to the Promised Land. Little did I know, this story would become even more real to me during our trip to Poland...I mean, where's the desert there?!?!
Everyone on our team had scheduled their own flights to and from the States, and since we have Delta Sky Miles our flight itenerary took us leaving from Krakow to Prague (spending the night) then on Tuesday, Atlanta to Charleston...or so we thought. We arrived to the Krakow airport on Monday, and though it seemed busy, everything seemed to be going along well. We got to the gate and found some seats to sit and wait...and wait...and wait. First there were 2 delays, and then came the dreaded "your flight has been cancelled" announcement. At this point the re-book line was ridiculous because all flights were being cancelled, so we decided we would get train tickets and go overnight to Prague to catch our trans-Atlantic flight the following day. Once we made it to the train station, there were only second class tickets left. "Okay, we can handle second class seats (sitting up all night), at least we would be moving in the right direction and we can sleep on the plane home, " we thought. At 9:30pm we went to board the train...and discovered second class was first come first serve...and we weren't getting served. Marleigh was tired and hysterical because she didn't understand what was going on, I was down right mad, and Scott was frustrated with us both. So, off we go in the dark, in a foreign country to find a hotel room and try to reschedule flights...again. Marleigh got even more upset because it was dark and starting to drizzle. Scott told us to go stand under an awning and just as he said "I've got to find a hotel" 2 glass doors to Andel's Hotel opened.
Honestly, it was like a "Halelujah Chorus" moment...and then we make it to the room to discover air conditioning, a king-sized bed, a huge tub (so Marleigh can take a "tub bath"), and heated ceramic tile bathroom floor! The next morning, we had a fantastic breakfast buffet included as well, but then we had to go back to the airport. This time we were trying to get to Frankfurt and then back to Prague for our trans-Atlantic flight. Everything seemed to be going fine again...and then the dreaded 30 minute delay notification. I felt like a balloon with the air let out, and the grumbling began. Just like the Israelites, I forgot about how the Lord had so graciously provided for us the night before and just a few hours before with a delicious breakfast and FULL refund on our train tickets. All I thought was "I can't do this again!" We did eventually make it to Frankfurt a bit late, but that caused us to miss the flight to Prague. So here we go again...but not with Prague in the equation anymore. After about 3 hours of re-booking and "hide and seek" to find our luggage, we headed to a hotel in Frankfurt to spend the night and try again tomorrow.
Hour 40...we board the plane to go to Atlanta. I could have cried when we touched down in Atlanta! I am not a fan of the Atlanta airport, but it never looked better than it did yesterday! We then were able to catch our plane to Charleston (and even got an upgrade to 1st class).
So, what is the point of all this terribly long travel story? Mostly, it is a written reminder to me and an encouragement to you that the one true God is a faithful God. He has many infinitely equal other attributes, but He is always faithful to His children...even thought there may be many twists and turns and bumps in the road. And, in the midst of His faithfulness He is gracious...showering us with luxury we don't deserve. I am so very thankful today to be back home (washing loads and loads of clothes) and changing the diapers of my two little ones again. Mostly, though, I am thankful that even though I had to wander in the "desert" in Poland, the Lord was faithful to show Himself to me in an awesome way!
