If three years ago or so someone had told me I’d soon be an expert on airports throughout Southeast Asia I would have laughed in their face. Sure, I might visit occasionally if the opportunity arose, but an expert? Ha! What are the odds of that?
Still incredibly slim but, in this case, God held the dice for me and here I am. In the past years my travels beyond Indonesia have taken me to Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Japan (mainland and Okinawa), Nepal, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Taiwan. Some of these places I’ve been almost monthly, and others just a few times. I’m in and out of Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) on average at least four times every month as it’s a necessary transit point between Medan and the rest of the world.
I have indeed become an expert on SE Asian airports!
Which sounds exotic, until it isn’t. Air travel is hardly the glamorous adventure it used to be, and even within my lifetime the complications of security and huge increases in passenger volume have made navigating airports something more akin to combat duty, with an associated list of PTSD-style effects.
At times this is irritating. Usually when trying to get through security screening. I have it down to an art and I’m ready to place my items on the conveyor belt as soon as I reach it. Most other people aren’t and I can get impatient. Most airlines won’t allow you to check-in for a flight more than two hours before scheduled departure, and some don’t maintain full-time counter personnel so you aren’t even sure *where* they’ll open up.
Whenever I start to get annoyed, I remind myself of the amazing miracle of God it is that I’m needing to endure that particular inconvenience. Sit on a tile floor for a few hours waiting to check-in? Not fun, but I’m doing it on entirely different side of the world! Annoyed by the passengers who – despite waiting in a line where videos play and audio recordings advise what you have to remove to get through security successfully still seem surprised and perplexed and take FOREVER? Hey, this is a problem I haven’t had to deal with very much in my life as a whole.
Such momentary deep breaths and associated prayers both for patience as well as gratitude usually do the trick and I’m feeling better before long. Inconveniences are necessary in order to be blessed and be a blessing in serving the Body of Christ in a pretty unique way. And, the more I endure the inconveniences, the smaller they become. I hated the expression new normal during Covid, but it seems like a more palatable way of describing my life now. Normal is relative, elusive, and sometimes completely absent. Yet God’s grace continues even when my patience runs thin. So far by his mercy I’ve been able to get just about everywhere I’ve needed to get and done what I had hoped and planned to do – to his glory not mine. And part of his glory is ensuring all the necessary inconveniences happen according to his plan. I don’t credit or fault God for the inconveniences – I’m pretty sure Satan gets the credit or blame for those! – but God gets the glory for getting me through them.
Thank you for your continued prayers. I’m nearly back home for the first time in a month and excited to be with my family again. I’m also anxious to get my new passport in hand and get back to work on the road in January! I guess that’s a good thing, to still be excited about sitting on airport floors! God truly is amazing!
The Nelson Family Indonesia 