Are You Going To Make Your Connection [With God?]

After a spirit-empowered week in Brazil with Global Awakening, members of the group gathered at the Curitiba Airport to make single 7 pm flight out to the airport in Sao Paulo, at which time we would connect with other flights to our various homes. But our plane was delayed over and over again and we finally flew out at 9.  This fact meant each of us (about 15) would have from 5 to 30 minutes to make our way to the next terminal and our respective gate.  We were all flying different air lines.Once we arrived at Sao Paulo terminal 1,  we all scurried around to find which terminal and which gate our particular flight was.  I followed the group to terminal 3.  We sprinted to the next terminal and the next, jogging with desperation, pulling our rolling suitcases and slugging our back packs. I arrived out of breath at Terminal 3, only to learn that I was at the wrong terminal.  My flight was to go at 11 p.m from Terminal 2 (I had run through that one one thousand breaths earlier) and the departure screen was flashing “last call.”  It was 10:53.  When I say, “I learned that I was wrong” this was a painful process of searching for someone who would speak English in this Portuguese-speaking place.  A few did,  but they offered vague and confusing directions.  No one would call my plane and ask United to hold it.Back the way I came, I ran sweating and breathless.  My back pack started un-zipping (due to broken zipper from all the thumping) and books, socks, and snacks began to fall out, making a path of objects on the crowded floor.   I fixed that and kept running.  I was trying to praise the Lord anyway, which was sheer act of discipline. Truly I had seen miracles the past week. Shouldn’t I be praising God?  It was 11:07.  I arrived at the correct terminal but had to go through the security luggage search.  As I waited in line, quite frantic, I asked God for help and for peace. I pushed myself into praising, even though I felt utterly hopeless.The security lady on the luggage check opened up my suitcase and began to rummage through my personal things — slowly, oh, so slowly.  She pulled out unacceptable items (ones no other security guard had taken issue with).  She confiscated my tooth paste (no teeth brushing that night), my special body cream (that had cost me a pretty penny.) I was close to tears, because I couldn’t understand what was really going on, and people were frustrated with me and rude.At 11:20, when I was cleared by the baggage check to move on, I started up running.  Within a few minutes, out of breath and bewildered,  I finally stopped in front of the departure monitor to figure out my gate.  I took some deep breaths, settled my pounding heart, wiped the sweat off my brow, and blew my nose.  I asked God to give me Shalom peace, and I released my desire to make that flight to Jesus.At 11:23 Bruna, a tailored United attendant, asked me in perfect English, “May I help you?”  Once she understood, she made a call to the airline while we were sprinting side-by-side to the right gate.   Praise the Lord, that I was able to get on that plane, the last of 500 passengers. Another angel, Janice the flight attendant, unscrambled the seating (my reserved one had been given away) and spoke to me words of reassurance.  When the plane took off at 11:30 p.m. I sobbed with gratitude.But the big question remained:  why had the Lord put me through this?  (I always asked that question after a tough situation.)  I believe this was a prophetic parable about what our spiritual experiences can be like as we struggle to make that saving connection with our Abba Father.  God should be our final connection.  As we run to find our Heavenly Abba, we bump into errors on our part (I followed the group to the wrong terminal without asking if I should be going that way.)  We are faced with confusion and misunderstandings in communication, invasion of our privacy, broken emotional zippers so our “stuff” starts falling out.  All these events and emotions may leave us lost, hopeless, heartbroken, angry and scared.But in our desperation we need to praise the Lord.  He is a miracle-working God.  He wants us on that plane.  He will set up signs along the way. He will give us people who speak our language.  He will give us “angels” to guide us. But first we have to release ourselves to Him.  Only then will we make our way onto the plane, into His loving and everlasting arms. In Christ,