Airport Adventures Like No Other

In January 2008, I flew to Florida and Indiana for two television interviews. In all my life, I’ve never played such a game of “Good News, Bad News.”

The first flight, from Seattle to Chicago, went well. My connecting flight to Tampa, however, experienced maintenance trouble so I sat in the plane, at the gate, for 4.5 hours waiting for the fix.

Meanwhile, my friend Peggy was to meet me in Tampa, take me to my TV interview the next morning, and drive me back to the airport. When I phoned her about our plane’s delay, she told me that she and her husband had both fallen ill so she’d made other arrangements for me. Visions of a happy chat went “poof.”

Peggy’s fever broke overnight and we were able to spend a few hours together after all. Unfortunately, when she dropped me off at the airport, I forgot my leather coat which I’d tossed on the back seat of her car. She was long gone before I realized it was missing.

I flew from Florida to Chicago and discovered that my connecting flight to Indiana was canceled due to weather. Fortunately, I was able to buy a bus ticket to my destination. Within a half hour of our departure, however, a blizzard blew in. The roads turned icy and visibility dropped to near-zero. My bus arrived in South Bend, Indiana five hours later (the trip takes 18 minutes by air).

I had a contract for a rental car at the airport but that agency’s counter was closed when I arrived. My only option was to go outside, coatless in sub-zero weather, and wait for a taxi. What did I find? An off-duty cabdriver parked outside, waiting for his wife. He drove me to my hotel, picked me up for my TV interview the next morning, and even lent me his winter jacket to wear en route.

The “Good News, Bad News” game continued when the interview ended. My flight back to Chicago was canceled. Like dominos, that would mean missing my connection to Seattle.

Fortunately, an earlier scheduled flight to Chicago was boarding as I approached my gate. The gal at the ticket counter said, “There’s one empty seat. You can have it.” I battled the freezing winds on the tarmac, boarded the plane, and breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Two minutes later, the flight attendant approached me and said, “Sorry, this seat is inoperable. You have to get off.” And so I returned to the terminal where I sat for another 3.5 hours, waiting for the next available flight.

It’s hard to believe all those events happened within a space of 48 hours.

My interviews were about Moving From Fear to Freedom: A Woman’s Guide to Peace in Every Situation, and the entire trip gave opportunity to practice what I preach.

Through each potentially frustrating and fearful situation, one Scripture verse came to mind:

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, whose thoughts are fixed on you!” (Isaiah 26:3)

Rather than fixating on the annoyances and sometimes frightening circumstances of this trip, I chose to pray and praise along the way. And whaddya know – it worked! My confidence in God’s sovereignty was strengthened, and peace reigned. More than ever, I believe that focusing our thoughts on the character of God is the key to inner peace in the midst of the unexpected.