Years ago I had a very special friend who believed in traveling "light."
Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries
By Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour
"The Packing List"
May 9, 2017
Psalm 121:7-8 - The LORD will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.
Years ago I had a very special friend who believed in traveling "light."
His philosophy was he would take with him only those things that were absolutely essential; everything else, that is the non-essentials, he would pick up as he went along. In contrast to that wonderfully cavalier way of traveling was my mother. Nether budget nor personal preference allowed her to do that. When the family was going on vacation she brought out "the list."
The list included absolutely anything and everything we would need on that trip. To her credit, the list worked, and it made the trip seem effortless.
Now those styles of travel differ in many, if not most, things. Still, they agree on this: you don't want to forget things that are really, really important, you know, the things you can't do without.
Now I bring this up because on April 6, a Federal air marshal was on a Delta flight traveling from England to New York. That is not an unusual thing. Air marshals regularly travel aboard international jets. What was unusual about this air marshal is that she forgot something -- something important.
You guessed it. She forgot her gun. That's bad. Even worse, she forgot her gun in one of the plane's bathrooms. Thankfully, the weapon was found by a "good person" and not by a nasty terrorist type individual. The forgotten weapon was turned into the flight crew.
And the air marshal who had forgotten her pistol, what did she do?
Well, I can tell you what she didn't do. She didn't report her gun as being missing. Not for day one, nor day two, or for a number of days. All in all, it seems like a serious oversight to me, but her supervisors didn't see it that way and she was not punished.
Lucky girl.
All of this takes me to the point of this devotion. It is a question: as you travel through life and make your preparations for the life to come, what things should you never forget? What are the things which should always be on your list?
Now since this is a Christian devotion, I'm pretty sure all of the Daily Devotioners are going to give a "Christian" answer. You're not going to say, "The one thing which is of paramount importance for my life's journey is making sure I have clean socks and an extra set of underwear."
No, you are going to say something like "I need to have my faith with me at all times." That's a good answer. Maybe you might reply "I need to have an attitude which is a positive, Christian outlook no matter what unexpected thing might come my way." That would also be an excellent answer. Both responses would get you a passing grade.
But the answer I like best is the one which says, "I don't want to forget my traveling Companion. I want to travel each and every day with the Savior. He is the one Person I dare not forget. He is the one Irreplaceable on my travel list."
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, may I always remember the most important thing on my life's journey is to be constantly with Jesus who has won my salvation and given me all I need to get to my final destination. In Jesus' Name I pray it. Amen
Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
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