My wife and I took a late evening flight to Atlanta. Prior to departure I bought some Gummy Bears and gave them to her to store in her purse for me until we got on the plane. We couldn’t sit together due to our last-minute booking, and she ended up sitting in the seat directly behind me.
The flight took off without incident and after about ten minutes I developed an insatiable craving for those Gummy Bears. I turned around to ask her to hand them over and when I looked at her; I suddenly recoiled like I’d seen a snake.
Aghast I saw that my wife was sound asleep with her head pointed straight up and her mouth gaping wide open. Visualize that image for a moment; it reminded me of an alligator or a crocodile sunning itself on the bank of a river with its mouth wide open.
It was disturbing.
I wanted those Gummy Bears and desired them with all my fiber, but I didn’t want anyone to know that I was with her and couldn’t bring myself to try and wake her up.
So, I just sat there and suffered in silence.
By the time the plane landed, I’d already decided that I’d pretend that I wasn’t with her until everyone who’d observed her sleeping on the plane with her mouth gaping open had departed. I was able to get a little ahead of her in the line to exit the plane. After exiting I waited in the gate area and pretended that I was looking through my briefcase until I saw her come through the exit door and begin walking towards me. As she approached, I quickly turned and led the way to baggage claim pretending I was conversing on a call on my cell phone.
When we got to baggage claim I tried to continue my little charade by rifling through my briefcase as though looking for my car keys; however, my wife kept coming over and trying to talk to me.
She asked a question and I nonchalantly answered, “Ma’am?” and tried to pretend I didn’t know her.
After looking at me like I was crazy she asked what I was doing. I finally confessed and told her what I’d observed and that I was trying to pretend that I didn’t know her.
Her response was to start hysterically laughing, and then she opened her mouth as wide as she could muster and started chasing me around baggage claim with her mouth gaping open. Imagine this old man trying to escape a determined woman with her mouth gaping wide open chasing him around baggage claim with people staring at us.
This incident reminds me of how Christians sometimes avoid letting anyone know that they have faith in God. It’s as though they are embarrassed by it somehow. They furtively look around and then talk in whispers so no one will hear the word Jesus.
This is no laughing matter to God. Jesus warned us about this type of behavior, stating there would be a serious consequence for it. It’s far more serious than the consequence that I underwent for denying knowing my wife, (which will be nowhere near as bad as the price I will pay for recounting this story when she reads it).
Jesus Christ paid a heavy price on the cross for us in order that we might live. Be proud to bow your head and say grace or otherwise pray in front of others, and do not be ashamed of being a Christian or talking about it to others.
Proudly tell everyone that you can what a tremendous difference He makes in your life. I am very proud to be a Christian and do not care who knows it. How about you?
Matt. 10:33
But whoever denies Me before
men, him I will also deny before My
Father who is in heaven.