Thanks for your prayers about our situation. After being refused boarding on the plane back to the country where our boys are, we stayed overnight in a hotel near the airport in Germany.
We were back at the airport at 5 am and talked with the ticket agent about our situation. She called officials in the country we were headed for and was told again, “No, they cannot come.” Another chance to praise God and continue in the adventure He had for us.
She also told us that if we flew back to the States from Germany, we would have to pay for a whole new set of tickets!
If we couldn’t return to our boys, Barbara would be without her blood pressure meds and her antidepressant pills, meaning she would go into withdrawal and go right down hill! And all of our clothes, etc, would be left with our boys. Plus I wouldn’t be able to speak in the different venues that had been arranged for me, and we would not be able to follow up on our friends who had shown more spiritual interest. A lot to be lost.
The idea came to call the American Embassy in the country we wanted to enter, to check on what they knew; they confirmed that if I had a valid visa, there is no reason we could not return.
In praying further about it, I thought of how officials in the Middle East often say, “No,” because they don’t want to think through an issue, and “No” is always a safe route. To say “Yes” may get them in trouble. I was pretty sure the official the girl had spoken to had not listened, so after praying further, I went and talked with her again.
I asked her if she had gotten an official writing about this situation, and if I could see it. She called it up on her computer, and after reading it, I pointed out to her that it only dealt with Americans who didn’t have a visa, while I had a valid one.
Then she looked with me at my visa, and I pointed out that the issue date was before the visa crisis had come, and that it was valid til the end of December. The lights went on for her, so she again called the official and got the him to listen to the whole story, and he said, “Yes!”
So, we got on the plane at 7:45 am and were back with Josh and Nat at 4 pm, just in time to make it to the Thanksgiving celebration at Nat’s! God answered and worked things out.
It was a pretty strenuous trip, so we are pretty worn out. Please pray especially for Barbara’s recovery, and that this extra stress won’t wipe out all the progress she made in Germany—this, of course, is Satan’s goal in this spiritual warfare. God had his own goals in this “detour”, like being able to share spiritual truth with the Middle Eastern shuttle bus driver who took us to the hotel.
Our privilege is to trust God, praise Him in and for all, and move on in His power. Keep looking up, thinking up and praising in all. Warmly, Steve W
