The Long and Short of It

Wow, in EST it has been 32 1/2 hours since I left the house for the airport.  At nearly 11 am EST, it is nearly 6 pm in South Africa.  Both my flights were smooth and uneventful, unless you count the screaming babies. :)  
On my first flight, I was reminded of God's creativity.  When we took off, the skies were all a deep blue with stars all around.  Within the little more than hour long flight, I was able to watch the sun rise.  It began with a slight tinge of dark orange along the horizon to the east, gradually becoming brighter and larger.  It never ceases to amaze me how God blends those contrasting colors.  They faded from one to the other so perfectly.  
My second flight, was oh so long.  I had hoped to catch some semi-decent sleep on that 15 hour flight.  I dozed off and on...  If that seat had been just 3 inches wider, it would have been so much more comfortable.  I watched a few movies, some episodes of House and Knight Rider, played a few games, and ate some pretty good food too.  I was surprised at how good the food was.
I was fortunate enough to have a familiar face waiting on me at the airport.  It made the entire trip less stressful just knowing that in the end, I would see a friend.  The drive from the airport to the campus was also relatively uneventful.  It's kinda weird being on the "wrong" side of the road though.

I had no idea that when I logged onto facebook that I would find out that one of my uncles had passed away while I was in the air.  Uncle Monroe had fibrosis of the lungs.  We knew it had gotten bad, but did not expect him to leave us so soon.  I am so glad that I was able to see him at Christmas.  Though my heart breaks for my family, I know that he is no longer in pain.  He had a glorious reunion with the One who had created him.  Please pray for my family as we are grieving this loss.  



"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
 "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Matthew 18:18-20