Olive Crest United Methodist Church
7180 North 60th Street
Omaha, Nebraska 68152

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Rev. Debra Tompsett-Welch

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The Spiritual Life

January 2001

Living Abundantly in the New Millennium, or Airlines, Airports and Looking for God

By Rev. Michael Lee Burgess

In my life, as in every life, there are times of struggle, conflict and long periods of frustration. But I have found that when I am trying to live facing toward God, that acts of grace and love seem to become more common. Small acts of kindness add together to make the impossible happen. This happened to me again on Christmas day. I was trying to fly to our family Christmas in Leesburg Virginia and it got complicated.

After Christmas eve worship (which was wonderful) I went home to pack all the presents mom and dad couldn't get into their car (and a few clothes in the tiny little remaining space) into two huge suitcases so I could catch the flight for Virginia in the early morning. (Very early, I had to be there by 6:30 a.m.). That meant a 2 hour nap before waking up Kurt to give me a ride to the airport (he volunteered). I got the things out of the office I needed for study, found all the presents that got lost and packed everything into Kurt's car and headed out. Kurt dropped me off at the curb and went home to get some sleep and I went into the counter, dragging these two dinosaur size suitcases. I was very tired, a little anxious about being gone so long (4 1/2 days) and ambivalent about leaving like I always am. But I was starting to look forward to seeing my nephews and family. This was going to be good. The line at the counter was not too long and I had plenty of time. I stepped up to the lady at the United counter and handed her my Drivers License (they need a photo ID). She typed my name into the computer, looked me up and said "I am sorry sir, your ticket is not valid." (I thought "WHAT". The first impulse was to be angry, but does seem God like, and also not justified, yet. I decided, maybe I just don't understand?) After some discussion she got it across to me that my brother-in-law Joel needed to sign a piece of paper to prove that I was not stealing his frequent flyer miles because our last names were not the same. He would need to drive to a ticket agent in Leesburg or the Washington/Dulles airport and physically sign a release before they would let me on the plane. They also said that if I didn't get on the plane today there were no open seats for three days. Now I no longer had plenty of time!

I put through a collect call to Virginia. Somehow I got cut off when mom started talking. After three busy signals I got into my carry on bag and found a calling card and kept hitting redial till I got through. Joel said to call him back and he would call his travel agent. I watched the clock for 15 minutes and took off the duct tape from around my big bag and got my cell phone out and called him back. He said he wasn't done yet, give him my cell phone number. "I can't," I said, "I don't know what it is, no one ever calls me on it, beside the battery is always dying." And as I said that, it did. I stood their waiting, holding my dead phone, and watching the time for my flight approach. I wondered who it was who had invited me to spend Christmas with them. I was too tired, I couldn't remember. But it is too soon to give up, and today is Christmas, when we celebrate the birthday of my friend and Lord and I was not going to be grumpy today, at least not yet. If I can't chose to do something for a whole day, I can chose to do it for right now.

I drug my bags back up to the counter and sat on them. I heard one lady talking on the phone to a ticket agent about frequent flyer regulations and that sounded like my problem and so I went up and identified myself. Yep, they were talking about me. I offered to show them some of Joel's Christmas presents so that they would know that we were actually related, that I did know him. I read them off Joel's home phone number and talked about the family. Finally she called Joel up at home and said, "Well sir, if I am wrong this could cost me my job, but I am going to give you a Christmas present and let Mr. Burgess on the plane." I had missed my flight but they put me on a different flight that would actually get me into Virginia three hours earlier. Wow. I just went from disaster to better in five minutes (and one hour of patience). I checked in my luggage, made it through security without getting arrested (though they decided to check my bag for explosives because it took me two times to get through the metal detector, the cross you know).

Now I am seated beside a very nice couple from Lincoln (she runs the Children's museum there and they had just remodeled). We taxi out to the runway and then we stop. We wait and wait some more. The nice lady tells me about a time when she had to spend 7 hours on a plane before taking off (that does not help me be hopeful). Finally they announce that they have a problem with hydraulic pressure, and since that is needed for the brakes, they are going to have to go back to the terminal and get a mechanic to come out and look at it (the nitrogen condenser needed to be replaced). I stare out the window and think to myself, that getting a mechanic on Christmas morning is going to take awhile. We return to the terminal and they are very nice and let us off the plane (some airlines have not done that in the past). I have a nap on three seats and after an hour I get off and buy some milk to go with my food bar from my bag (the first pint was $.90 and the second, 30 minutes later, was $1.04, strange how fast inflation can go). Then I visit with a very cute couple who is going to Kentucky to meet his side of the family after spending Christmas Eve with her side. I plugged in my cell phone into the wall and let it charge for an hour. Finally after many announcements of a "we should know something in just a few minutes more" they say, "United Flight 302 to Chicago/Ohare has been canceled, please return to the terminal to claim you baggage." There was a mad stampede. I followed more slowly and go back onto the plane to get my coat. Then instead of running down to the baggage claim area I stand in line with some nice people to talk to the ticket agent, my bags would still be there and I was too tired to run, and still feeling mellow from the nice people I had talked to. (When you are trying to face toward God, being mellow goes a long way.) We had a good time talking about Christmas experiences, and one mother told about transporting her son all over the country for Martial Art competitions and they were on their way to Atlanta for one in two days. We had been in line for around 20 minutes when suddenly we heard, "United Flight 302 to Chicago/Ohare has been reinstated, please return to the plane for immediate departure."

We got back on and I visited with the nice people from Lincoln and we took off (the pilot must have been in the navy because we took off straight up, and came down that way too). The pilot cut off 15 minutes from our travel time but there was still only 19 minutes till my next flight left for Washington/Dulles. I ran off the plane and the nice couple who got off before me yelled out my gate number as I ran by. We came in at Terminal 3, my flight left from Terminal 1. A very very long ways away (many many football fields). I couldn't run the whole way (not in good enough shape) but running and walking on the moving sidewalk slide ways is fun, the wind in your face feels like you are really flying. I ran up to the gate (wheezing), gave her my ticket to get my boarding pass just as the flight attendant started to close the gate. But I made it. My bags got there a day later, but Joel found me at the baggage claim area and helped me file a claim for them and I was in Virginia and it was not even 6:00 p.m. yet. Plenty of time to still have presents unwrapped today. (The flight home was interesting too, but too long for my article. Though I did meet a neat guy from Germany who writes reviews of video games during our waiting out the blizzard in Chicago. Also I got extra instruction by the stewardess on how and when to open the emergency doors next to my seat in the back of the plane right next to the engine intakes. Very interesting. I am also glad I took earplugs with me.)

Now all the things that happened to me could have been a horrible disaster and ruined my time with my family completely. Or it can be an adventure, even while it is happening, if I chose it to be. The plane is going to still have trouble, the weather is still going to be difficult. But how am I going to respond to it? It is a disaster or an adventure? If all of your life, and everything in it is either moving toward God or away from God by how I react to it, then what choice moves me closer to God? When I have a clear understanding of that, then I will know what is the right choice and will live abundantly in this new Millennium.

Sometimes it helps to have others give me feedback to make that choice. Together we can see farther than we can by ourselves. The nice people I talked with and who shared this adventure and their resolute optimism and never give up attitude, helped me also enjoy our time. We can do this as part of our church family too. Let us move toward God together and encourage each other on the journey through troubles. If we do we will make all our lives better in the joy of community. Thank you for being there for me as I try to be their for you.

Your brother-in-Christ, Rev. Michael Lee Burgess

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