A Glitch in the Plans

After working on the plans for the trip to Thailand, we discovered that we had overlooked one minor detail; however, we discovered that it really isn't all that minor to forget to make sure that all the passports are current.

Molly looked at hers Friday night, just hours before we were to leave on Saturday, and it was expired. Not a happy moment at the Buchan household as the ramifications for an expired passport sunk in. No passport, no trip. The four of us: Bill, Bonnie, Molly and myself gathered at the dinner table and tried to decide what to do. We were at an impasse.

We didn't actually decide the plan until the morning of our scheduled departure at noon. I came with a willingness to relinquish the trip, after feeling the night before that I couldn't let go of it because of how it would affect Heather. Bill came with a decision to bless Bonnie and I going, with an intent to try to move heaven and earth to get himself and Molly on the plane.

So, with just a little over an hour, Bonnie and I got ready to go. Everyone was upset, but I knew that this is one of those times when the Scripture says that "we can speak to a mountain and tell it go into the sea." I began to pray that verse in Mark 11, asking God to move a mountain that was caused by our negligence, but to have mercy on us because of the importance of this trip to our family.

I did not know until this morning that the people of Missio Lux also went to the Lord and asked him to move the mountain. I will always be grateful for their prayers. One woman organized a 24 hour prayer chain of people that willingly prayed for our family and for the passport agent who would make the decision whether our family trip happened or not.

I am excited about this on lots of levels: the first is that Molly got her passport and tomorrow Bill and Molly will be on the plane to meet us. We will get to be together and experience Asia as a family. The second reason I am grateful is the love that the people of Missio Lux showed us in making this a priority in their lives. The last and very important reason I am thrilled is that we are discovering the correlation between prayer and God's willingness to intervene in situations; even those that aren't life or death matters, but do determine our level of well being and happiness.

God isn't a God who stands apart; no, he is Immanual.
God in flesh, amongst us.
In the messiness and forgetfulness of life.
I am forever grateful to be his follower!