I often would read or hear the stories in the Bible and wonder how people could forget God so quickly. For example, when God led the Israelites out of Egypt only to have them become ungrateful and start worshipping other gods so quickly or when the Disciples walked with Jesus day after day and then ran from him when the pressure was on. I used to say to myself, “Naw, I wouldn’t do that,” but I do the same thing without even knowing it.

Several months ago, I had traveled to Phoenix for a business meeting, and I was being dropped off at the airport to fly back home. As soon as I arrived at the airport, I learned that my flight was showing six hours delayed due to a mechanical problem with the aircraft! This was a very large airport so I assumed I could try to get on another flight to Dallas, but the next flight was four hours delayed due to another mechanical problem with that aircraft! These were the only two flights that would get me to Dallas in time to connect to my flight home. I raced around to find another option, another route, another airline, etc. I had spent many years working for a major airline, so this type of situation is one that I could almost always navigate around, but not this time. I was so frustrated with the situation and the rudeness of the airline staff, and I started to become almost entirely mad at everything. I think I was mad at more than just the travel situation. I was letting the irritations of my job, my status in life, my failed attempts to make more money in my career, and a host of other things overcome me in that very moment.

I went into the bathroom to calm down for a minute, and once I settled down I vividly recall thinking about a conversation I had several times before with a friend of mine, named Barry. He told me a similar story years ago about a time in which he was severely delayed in traveling somewhere, but his reaction to the situation was to ask God, “Well, what do you have in store for me now? Who do you want me to talk to tonight?” I know it sounds crazy, but I thought about that for a moment at the bathroom sink and then said, “God, who is it? Who do you want me to talk to?”

I walked out of the bathroom and within two minutes God revealed His plan! I walked down the concourse at the airport and passed several restaurants. I felt drawn to a particular restaurant, and when I entered, I felt something that could be described as a magnetic attraction drawing me half-way into the bar seating area (past several empty chairs up front) to a seat that sat directly across from a woman in her late 30s. As soon as she looked up at me, I knew instantly she was the one I was supposed to talk to that day. Conversation started immediately as if we had known each other for years, and we talked for over two hours. The stories we shared back and forth were so intertwined that some may find it hard to believe we did not know each other, but these similarities were beyond coincidence. I know and she knows this meeting was arranged by God.

She grew up a Jehovah’s Witness (JW), and she said she left the church nearly 15 years ago, but she was thinking she would rejoin the church in order to mend fences with her family and her old friends. The JW faith practices excommunication of those who leave their church, so she had been outside for a long time. Many years ago, I spent considerable time trying to reach the lost of the JW and Mormon churches. With the time constraints of life, jobs, kids, etc. I had let my zeal fall off, but in the matter of an instant I was propelled into this situation of sharing the real Jesus with her. I was kind to her but bold in my words. We didn’t debate the hot topics of the JWs versus mainstream Christianity, but rather we discussed the plan that Jesus has for us and how He is working in us to reveal His truth to us. I told her that God had her there at that moment to talk to me, and He completely destroyed my travel plans so that I could talk to her. I didn’t mince words about what I was feeling or the way the day shook down so we could meet the way we did. I believe it confirmed to her again what she already felt deep down in her heart. We parted ways, and I remember saying to her, “We will probably never see each other again as long as we live, but I know for certain that God had the both of us here for His purpose.”

After I left, I felt a giant crash in my soul. How could I forget God’s plans so quickly? How could I let these trivial travel delays get the best of me? How could I forget God? Shame on me, but praise be to God for not forgetting me.