Meet Me in St. Louis - Part 2

Psalm 137:23-24 The steps of the godly are directed by the Lord. He delights in every detail of their lives.

Have you ever had a fleeting feeling that the stuff you believe about God might not be true, might not be real? I have to admit I’ve had those thoughts. Sometimes it’s a real struggle to believe in a God you can’t see. But if there has ever been proof that God exists, I can testify to it by telling you a simple story; what happened on my flight to St. Louis. If you missed Meet me in St. Louis - Part I, I’ll give you a quick run-down. Number one; Girl signs up for Faith and Writing Workshop. Number two; Girl realizes a day before she leaves that the workshop is in St. Louis not Seward, NE. Number three; Girl gets on a plane and leaves for a few days adventure.

In Part I, I wrote about how overwhelmed I felt leaving the comfort of my little Nebraska town to travel to a city I’d never been to. But from the get-go, I realized God had something special planned for this trip. Maybe, more than anything, it was a chance to experience the realness that is God. To not only believe, but to encounter His nearness, His faithfulness, His I-care-about-every-detail-of-your-life type of thing.

Let’s start from where I left off. My husband had dropped me off at the airport. The moment I walked in, my heart began beating faster. I saw the line for security, and it was long. Would I make it to my gate on time? Then I remembered, I was taking this trip one moment at a time. Taking a deep breath I tried to calm myself. Things would be fine, I told myself. Just fine. The line did move rather quickly and, before I knew it, I was at my gate waiting to board the plane. It was packed. Since I’d just booked my flight the day before I would be in the last group to board. Sighing, I dropped into my seat. I was about ready to get out my Nook for some pleasure reading when a gal around my age asked if she could sit next to me. We chit-chatted very briefly.

Before we took off I needed to go to the restroom, but I didn’t want to drag all of my stuff with me. This girl next to me seemed pleasant enough. I asked if she would watch my things while I was gone, and she agreed. I hurried off to find a bathroom. Maybe I was being naïve trusting this stranger. On the other hand, maybe God had placed this person in my path for a reason.

When I returned I found that the passengers were beginning to board. Since I’d never flown Southwest, I was a little confused about the process. Thinking that this girl seemed to know what she was doing, I asked her for a few tips. She must have sensed my amateurishness because she offered to save a seat for me on the plane. I readily accepted. Once I’d found her, I breathed a sigh of relief and sunk into my seat. I’d made it thus far without any major catastrophes. So far. So good.

As the plane took off, I asked my neighbor what she did. “I’m a writer.” she responded. Eagerly, I turned to her and told her that I was also a writer. I explained that I would be attending a Faith and Writing Workshop in St. Louis. We chatted more, and I discovered that she had self-published a few books. During the flight, we discussed the advantages of self-publishing versus conventional. She gave me some good tips and pointers about self-publishing.

The flight went by rather quickly. Just as we were landing, she handed me her card. “Here. Feel free to contact me if you have any more questions.” As we were leaving the plane she turned to me and said, “You know, I never talk to anyone when I fly. It was really unusual for me to even sit by you in the airport.” I, of course, had to give credit where credit was due, “Yea, guess it was meant to be,” I hesitated, “a God-thing you might say.” Smiling and nodding, she hurried off the plane to catch her connecting flight.

I guess my question for you is this; Do you see the ‘God moments’ in your own life? If your answer is, “No,” my question is, “Why not?” Because if you do stop and search for those ‘God moments’ you’ll realize just how much He cares about every detail of your life. Every detail. Even the seemingly insignificant ones.

So I guess I’ll bring this around full circle. When I’m tempted to think that all this ‘God stuff’ is just foolishness, I’ll remember my flight to St. Louis. Every part. And smiling as I did when I was walking off the plane that day, I’ll remember this; God is real, and, more importantly, God is good.

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