As I was anticipating the gradual decent into Goroka, absorbed in cleaning out the photos on my phone as I always do when I’m flying, I felt the momentum of the plane change. Instead of steadily going down, we were accelerating and turning. Several minutes passed before the pilot came over the intercom to say that we had to return to Port Moresby. There was too much cloud cover, and we were running low on fuel so we could not continue the attempt.
Sigh . . . After already having my flight unexpectedly cancelled the day before, and having to find a hotel in the capital city without internet (there was no Wi-Fi in the airport and my eSIM hadn’t been re-set-up yet) and it being my fifth flight in the journey to return to PNG, I was over it.
The 75 or 80 passengers filtered back into the departure lounge of the Port Moresby airport and were told to wait. I wasn’t sure if that meant we would travel later that day on an afternoon flight or if they would reschedule us for the next day and send us off; I felt a bit panicky. How do I connect with my friends who were picking me up and my mom to tell her I was okay or my “pit crew” to ask them to pray? I asked an airport employee if I could use a hotspot but no. I felt really alone and unable connect.
But then, a lady asked me if I had been on the Goroka flight. I found out she was from Sri Lanka, and this was her first time to PNG. Her husband was supposed to come with her, but he had gotten turned back in Singapore, because they didn’t have their marriage certificate with them. And I thought I was having a bad day!
You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.” Psalm 139:3 NLT
I also reconnected with a 12-year old PNG girl who was traveling on her own. She had been sitting next to me earlier in the morning as we originally waited for the plane to board. So, the three of us stuck together to wait and hear what our instructions would be. In the Port Moresby Domestic Terminal, you need three sets of ears listening for announcements. My new Sri Lankan friend even bought us waters. I had been at the airport since 5:30 a.m. and with all the delays and our 1-hour flight becoming two hours, now it was noon, but I was out of Kina (currency of PNG), so it was a really needed water!
Then a little over an hour later, a new flight crew walked through the crowd and five minutes after that they announced we would be re-boarding. And the 2nd time around we made it. It’s so sweet now to look back two weeks and see how the Lord provided for me on that day. How when I was alone He provided two very different people to become a comfort and a distraction from my own concerns. And even though I couldn’t communicate, my people, Jamie and Chandler Sharpe, were still there when my plane touched down. What a relief to see them as I stepped off the plane!
Not the smoothest transition back to PNG, but it will probably be one of the most memorable!
Ten Reasons I’m Glad to be Back in PNG
1. The Sharpe Family Jamie moved to this support center last January, and I have enjoyed her friendship and her family’s hospitality and fun since then. So grateful they’re here. Each of her kids made me a precious Welcome Back card! In this one, Malachi drew a photo of his family and me around a table playing a game! Which I love to do with them.
2. My Friend Freddy She’s just a delightful person, and I’m glad she’s still here. We’ve agreed that perhaps this is the year we should give up our weekly runs to walk instead.
3. Morning Quiet Time I love my time in the US, and it comes with so many good things that I love to do—like swimming at 7 a.m. or going to Huntington to be with my niece and nephew at 7 a.m. There’s not much going on here at 7 a.m., so it’s good for me to be able to refocus my mornings on God’s Word and prayer.
4. My Plants They did fairly well in my absence, and it’s been fun to try to get them all healthy again and bring some of them back into the house.
5. The Bird Sounds
6. Simila helps me around my house and garden and with food prep once a week. She committed her life to Christ just a year ago, and it’s beautiful to hear her testimony to God’s goodness in her trials and His obvious answers to her prayers.
7. Hanging up new photos As I re-set-up my house, all the photos remind me of the gifts God gave me in my time home this summer and of the friends He’s given me from around the world.
8. Chris and Evie Jones are here! They’re sent from Warsaw, IN as well, and we have Warsaw Community Church and lots of friends in common. The last time I saw them was probably three years ago in Indiana. Their flight back into their tribal location of Pei, in another region of PNG, got delayed due to fuel, so they are unexpectedly here when I am. Awesome.
9. Tribal Updates in Church. We recently had an update from the Wantakia Team, and it was just a reminder of what God can do in hearts, and how He changes lives and wants every one who follows Him to be a part of that with Him. Then a few of us ladies were able to pray with Lael from Wantakia before they flew back in.
10. The opportunity to use the gifts God has given me for His glory. I’m not entirely sure how that will play out this term, so please be praying for clear direction in how God wants to use me.
