Whew, A Break!

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It’s over. My wife and I, on a “traveling” whirlwind, have been out of town conducting conferences (and enjoying vacation) seven of the last 11 weekends. We’ve been to Oklahoma, Virginia Beach, Cincinnati, Dayton, Springfield, and Panama City, Panama.

Whereas the Apostle Paul writes about his travels, “Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers” (2 Corinthians 11:25b-26a, NLT) — our travels were much more sedate! 

One exception:

With vacation expectations of peace and rest, Barbara and I rented an apartment in Panama City, Panama. Note the advertised photograph of the balcony view. I could imagine myself reading books and writing Interruptions inspired by this view (with the Panama Canal in the background)…

However, the actual view from our rented apartment looked like this … 

Paul experienced a shipwreck and spent the night wallowing in the Mediterranean Sea until rescue. Although we didn’t suffer a shipwreck, having our flight canceled on the way home from Panama and stuck in the Atlanta airport at 2:30 a.m. could be considered the modern equivalent of Hades on earth. 

Last week, I shared the photo below of the Atlanta airport in an Interruption, but I can’t get this image of Hades on earth out of my mind…

We are home for a while (whew!), and later, we have trips to Bradenton, Florida, and the Philippines. During this respite, I will be moving into my new office, working on a new book, and catching up on my “to-do” list (which never gets shorter).

Barbara and I would like to thank all of you for reading Interruptions and for supporting our discipleship training with pastors and church leaders. It’s been a blessing to travel and help churches develop discipling ministries using my book, First Steps Conversations. 

Last Saturday, our team of Pastor Rick Ives, stellar businessman Bud Downing, and I taught a leadership team from a church at a hotel in Dayton, Ohio. It was a great day, with lots of interactions, comments, and questions from those attending.

People ask Barbara and me why we go to Panama for vacation. We aren’t interested in nightlife but “morning life” as we get up early and walk five miles each day before breakfast. It means that great places to walk become our number one requirement for a vacation location, and Panama City has 12 miles of waterfront walkways with skyline and ocean views. 

There’s one brother I send my travel itineraries to before each trip, and within minutes, he always texts to say he’s got us covered in prayer. My wife and I (and others involved in our ministries) appreciate your prayers, too.