Planes, Trains and Trials

Trials don't just carve out character . . . they also reveal character.

Sometimes they occur over long seasons, sometimes in an instant.

Today I flew into Lubbock for a good friend's father's funeral. As my first flight got to Houston I noticed that we started to go towards, and then went by, the airport. Different.
Shortly there after the flight attendant came on and told us that there was a 'problem.' The flaps on the wings were not working and we couldn't land right now. . . It got quiet. REAL quiet.

"Consider it all joy when you encounter various (read: about to die in an airplane crash!) trials . . ."

The lady next to me was shaken. I just let her talk . . . and prayed. I asked her if she knew Jesus. I'm not sure what her faith was before then, but at the time she was an enthusiastic follower.

I'm thankful that I've been dwelling on the verses about trials. God was gracious. Yes, I had a few heart palpitations, but I knew that it was OK. No matter what, God was in control. What an encouragement . . . I fail so much of the time, but how encouraging to be able to focus on eternity in the midst of the problem.

If we hadn't known anything . . . you would have never thought anything was wrong from the landing. OK, except for the firetrucks and ambulances and police cars that were all streaking out towards our runway. [I took this pic is the few emergency vehicles remaining about 15 minutes after we landed and were finally able to exit on the tarmac.]

Whether it's exciting airplane rides or daily life, God wants to draw us closer to Himself and make us more like Jesus.

What's God revealing about your character? Where is He renewing you?