By Patty A. LaRoche

My connecting flight from Fayetteville to Dallas was late, and if you know Dallas Airport, you know that it is not an airport in which you want to be short on time. Blessings came in different ways. The flight attendant asked all passengers who were not running late to stay in their seats so that those of us who were going to have to run to their gates could exit the plane rapidly. A courteous act that many attendants neglect.

According to my ticket, my second leg to Nashville was on the same concourse (praise Jesus), so I was better off than those who had to lope to a different terminal. I had landed at Gate Four and needed to get to Gate Ten. So close—a miracle! Right after I exited, I saw the sign “Gates 8-28” with an arrow pointing straight ahead. Still, I needed to sprint if I intended to make my flight.

I’m always surprised at how quickly I am out of breath when I attempt to move quickly, and it did not help that the gates were in reverse order. They started with 28 and moved down to 8. I had much farther to go than I expected. Fortunately, a drinking fountain was on my path; unfortunately, it was broken. Only a tiny squirt allowed per person. After four or five attempts, I gave up. I had lost precious time.

By the time I got to Gate 24, I needed oxygen, but as I chugged past 23, the announcement was made for that area: “Flight 1500 to Nashville is in its final boarding process at Gate 23.” Say what? My ticket said Gate 10. My ticket was wrong. Had I not fought with that drinking fountain, I would have been past that gate and would have missed the announcement as well as my flight. Did God tinker with that spigot to get me on that plane, the last plane of the evening to my final destination? Hmmm…

We love reading the Bible and learning of the many major miracles, and I know that my life has had not a few of them, but I wonder how many of the little “dailies” are God’s providential hand, making our lives easier. We drive to the store without a car accident or a thief accosting us in the parking lot or bare shelves to greet us. All five of our senses work, some better than others, as do our washing machines, lawn mowers and toilets (well, most of the time). Even if they don’t, could it be that, like the Dallas Airport drinking fountain, God is working from above the scenes? Saving us from a much more serious situation? After all, He is in charge, the Writer of our stories. If we don’t get the job or the mate or the gender of child we desire, could it be that, even though God’s ways are not our ways, they are intended to mature us to be examples to others?

If we pray for the highway drivers who cut us off instead of raging at them, will we be more likely to have peace in our car? Absolutely. If we mess up and need to apologize, is God glorified when we ask for forgiveness? Absolutely. In Isaiah 55:8-9, God declares:

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. (NKJV)

Are you dealing with something right now that is not going the way you planned? Are you out of breath, chasing after an elusive desire? If so, stop. Remember, God is in charge. Maybe it’s time to pray for a broken water faucet.