There are moments when you know the bumps are coming. There will be delays, obstacles, missteps. Though we might have a strong desire to avoid difficulties or evade an impasse, there’s often not much we can do to get around the inevitable. Thursday was a day filled with these inconveniences.
The first bump in our road came from hearing that weather had stopped all air traffic in and out of Houston throughout the morning. Our very early rising led only to hours seated in a cramped, under construction Omaha airport waiting for some good news about when we might start our journey south.
Though that journey would be delayed, our journey toward each other had time to begin. Excited about the adventure to come, our group spent many hours in two different airports learning more about each other. Over meals, walks, and an impromptu exercise session held at an unused gate, we slowly transformed from travel companions to friends.
Through all the starts, stops, and distractions of the day, our group of new friends found time to reflect on the day’s happenings at another airport gate and notice God’s presence in the vicissitudes of travel. Angela Sanders, a St. Wenceslaus parishioner, shared how she felt as if she were traveling with family instead of people she only knew from a handful of pre-trip meetings. She noted the care everyone was taking for one another as we navigated the frustrations of the delays.
Our trip through the air transformed into a late night ride through city traffic to our first stop in Antigua Guatemala. Our family for the next two weeks was completed there, when we connected with our Guatemalan team members who also spent a long day waiting for us to arrive.
Mission is often about leaning into the foreseen challenges and adapting to those we might not have expected. If Thursday was any indication, our twentieth core mission trip is going to be a great success.
