IPJA members practicing for next Monday’s match against LPC’s best

Becky and I have been in Brazil for five days now while the rest of the team has been on the ground for just a couple of hours – still one flight away from Belo Horizonte, as they await a noontime flight from São Paulo. It turns out that they did make any of their scheduled three flights – you can ask about the trip across New York from Newark International to JFK or how they ended up in São Paulo instead of Recife. In fact, they will arrive here just a couple of hours behind schedule, and we can hardly wait to see them all.

I don’t want to assign cosmic significance to flight delays, mixed connections, or rebookings. But I am more than willing to thank God for Brian Jennings good leadership of the team on their great adventure and for the great spirit on the team as Brian has reported it in our text messages over the past many hours. Maybe more than a theological account of providence, our team’s trip might be a parable of grace and sovereignty. Not a single flight on our carefully made reservation was ever used, but God’s purpose is being fully accomplished – his destination achieved in his time.

As we continue into the week, I pray that each of us on the team remembers the Parable of the Great Flying Adventure. I pray that we will be willing to lay aside our carefully made plans, our ideas of how things should go, and be open to the amazing, and better, things God has in store for us.

Now off to the airport in an hour or so. I can hardly wait to greet the team.