Emergency Landing

photo source

Thus says the Lord:

“The people who survived the sword
Found grace in the wilderness—
Israel, when I went to give him rest.”

- Jeremiah 31:2




 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says:

“In repentance and rest is your salvation, 
in quietness and trust is your strength.”
- Isaiah 30:15

"But for you who revere my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays.
And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.
Then you will trample on the wicked;
they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,"
says the Lord Almighty.
"Remember the law of my servant Moses,
the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.
"See I will send the prophet Elijah to you
before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.

 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children,
and the hearts of the children to their parents;
or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.


- Malachi 4:2-6

 

My beloved blog friends, another month has come to an end... and my name for this month is Emergency Landing. If you keep reading what I've written on this post, you will soon find out why.


In my previous post, published over three weeks ago, I wrote:

For me, embarking on a new journey is true not only in the natural sense. I am embarking on a new spiritual journey as well.

When I wrote those lines, I had no idea what God was going to do, or how the events of the days and weeks to come were to unfold.

All I knew was that something beautiful was going to happen, but the specific details would be revealed only as I walked on the road that was being opened up before me.

It was another example of possessing the land... one step at a time.


On May 8, five of us -- Raffi, Honey, Gina, Tina and I -- boarded our flight out of Manila. It was going to be a long journey. Personally, the Lord had already emotionally prepared me for this trip, but a few others on the team were not as ready. When we met at the Manila International Airport at 4 a.m. that morning, one of them told me that she was leaving with a heavy heart. Another friend said that she was embarking on this trip with much hesitation and trepidation.

I listened quietly and understood their inner struggles, fully aware of my own reluctance just a few days before. It was an act of God's grace that He spoke directly to me just that Sunday at my friend Alberto's church. The footage we viewed of the Chinese Christians, so passionate about their relationship with God, was still clearly embedded on my mind.

With a clear sense of purpose, I went through the long process of checking in, having our bags weighed, going through passport control and the series of security check before we finally reached the pre-departure lounge.

"Make it all worthwhile... for all of us, dear Lord," was my unspoken prayer.


Before long we were airborne. Two hours later the plane reached Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei, where we were to wait for twelve hours before boarding another plane that would take us to our intended destination.

Thanks to Raffi who needed to be on a wheelchair, we never had to line up for anything at the two airports. Because we were traveling as a group, we all received priority treatment accorded any passenger needing wheelchair assistance.

A shuttle bus took us to the hotel where we were booked for the duration of our layover in Brunei.

Gina had arranged for her friends Jess and Miks to pick us up from our hotel to give us a little tour of Brunei. Honey and I would have preferred to sleep that afternoon, but wanting to be polite, we went along with the plan.

We were not disappointed. Jess and Miks took us to the Empire Hotel, the grandest one in Brunei. Indeed, it was a sight to behold. Later that afternoon, we were invited to partake of high tea in the hotel's lobby. We took advantage of the soft armchairs, the unlimited herbal tea and freshly brewed coffee served with some delicious tea cakes, scones and biscuits.

Before returning to the Bandar airport, Gina's friends treated all of us to a delightful dinner.

We reached the pre-departure lounge in high spirits. And since there was still an hour left before boarding, we decided to spend the time in worship. Already our hearts were softened and encouraged by the goodness of Jess and Miks, and so far, everything had been going smoothly for all of us. Our group worship experience further set the tone for our trip.

Our flight took off at 9:30 p.m., and once on board, the captain announced that our destination was approximately eight hours away. Dinner was served shortly, after which we all hoped to settle down and get some badly-needed sleep.

Halfway through our meal, the flight stewards started collecting our dinner trays. I noticed that there was a sense of urgency in their movements. A few sleeping passengers were awakened and told to remain seated.

I grabbed Gina and Tina by their hands and said, "I think we're going to land. Notice how fast the stewards are moving, and why were our food trays collected when we hadn't finished eating yet? We better pray."

So we began to pray. While we were praying, the captain spoke.

As the pilot spoke, I couldn't believe my ears. I never thought I'd live to see the day when the words that I had only heard in movies would also become a real experience for me. I listened very carefully to his words that up to this day, I can still recall what I think he said, almost verbatim:

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. The aircraft has developed an electrical problem and we have not determined the cause of it. In twenty minutes we will have an emergency landing in Ho Chi Minh airport. Listen carefully to my instructions.

"Tighten your seatbelts now. Ladies, remove your high heeled shoes. Everyone, remove all sharp objects from your bodies.  It is possible that we will have a double impact landing. At my word, everyone must assume first brace position, as shown on the safety card in the seat pocket in front of you.

"When I give the word, upon landing, unfasten your seatbelts as quickly as possible, and head to the exit nearest you. Leave all belongings behind."

There was no time to lose. Raffi and Honey were seated a few rows behind us. I knew they were praying. Gina, Tina and I huddled close together and began to pray in tongues. A few minutes later, I received an instruction from the Lord that we pray to awaken the intercessors, so I shared this with them. Sometime later again, I heard another clear instruction for us to pray for God to deploy huge angels to surround the aircraft, to carry it on their huge shoulders, and let them bring it down safely. Once again, I shared these instructions with my two praying friends.

I prayed in tongues, and I also prayed all the prayers I could think of. After a few minutes, Gina opened her iPod, and with one earphone each, we listened to Psalm 91 several times on her audio Bible.

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
     will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the LORD,
     "He is my refuge and my fortress,
     my God, in whom I trust."

Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare...

He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart...

We also listened to Psalm 34.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
    and he delivers them...

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
    he delivers them from all their troubles.

 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

The righteous person may have many troubles,

    but the Lord delivers him from them all;

he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken.

What a sense of peace came over my heart as I heard these familiar words of Scripture!

After a few minutes, we also listened to the song, Mighty to Save.

Meanwhile, the smell of burning wires had intensified inside the aircraft, so we wet our blankets with water and put them over our eyes and noses.

I really had no idea how everything was going to end, but when I heard this question gently arise in my heart, "What are you afraid of?"... I knew it was the heavenly Father speaking to me.

I searched my heart for fear, but didn't find any. My reply to Him was quick: "Father, You know I am not afraid of death. I am ready to see You face to face... but please, for the sake of Raffi and Honey back there, their children are still very young, and they need their parents, dear Lord, please save us!"

This was when tears really started rolling down my cheeks. I pleaded with God to save us from a crash landing that could result in a fireball, knowing that only two hours' worth of fuel for an eight hour trip had been consumed.

At this point, the plane was descending very fast. Still praying, I craned my ears to listen if the landing gear would come out. I didn't hear the familiar thud. As I looked outside the window, I saw a long line of firetrucks and ambulances standing by. That was when the truth hit me ... I was prepared for the worst, but in my heart there was no fear... only peace.

And then, the plane touched down... ever so gently... there was no sudden stop. It really felt like heavens' giant angels had carried the huge Boeing 777-200 aircraft on their shoulders and landed it to safety.

I couldn't help but cry out, "Thank You, Father, for you have heard our prayers." Again and again, I thanked Him.

The sharp pungent smell of burning wires and the captain's voice brought us back to reality. "Ladies and gentlemen, please deplane immediately, and leave all belongings behind."

We disembarked in an orderly manner, clutching only our handbags, leaving behind our carry on bags without complaints... we were only too glad to be alive!

I don't have access to all the details. But I personally believe that things could have been much worse, and God did spare us from a possible crash landing.

We were shuttled to the pre-departure lounge of the Ho Chi Minh Tan Son Nhat International Airport where all 144 passengers, three of whom were babies and one was a three-year old girl, spent the night.

Our pilot, Capt. Jeremy Saap, updated us of the cause of the trouble. Some wires behind the kitchen ovens at the gallery catering equipment of the aircraft had overheated resulting in an electrical malfunction.

He didn't state it, but we all saw the wisdom of what he did. It was necessary for the aircraft to land for there was no way it could have survived the six more hours to our destination. As it was, Raffi, a former pilot, thinks that the airplane was already running on reserve power.

For those of us who understood, Capt. Saap was a hero. God guided him every step of the way, and he exercised quick thinking in the decision he made.  

It was near midnight when we landed. We were all uncomfortable as there was not enough space for all of us to stretch out on the seats, and the floor was too cold and hard for us to lie on. But nobody was complaining. We knew that negotiations were under way to transport us to a hotel, but this being an emergency situation, no one at the airport was prepared for the immigration issues that arose. Besides, as we found out later, the aircraft we were on had no landing rights in Vietnam. Clearly, we were on Vietnamese soil only as a sheer act of kindness.

At 7:30 a.m. of May 9 we were allowed to leave the airport. We lined up at the immigrations where our passports were taken in exchange for a numbered control card. Then we boarded several buses that were to take us to a hotel where we could finally freshen up and be served breakfast.

The rooms were very clean and the beds so inviting, but we really had no time to sleep on them. We only had time for a quick bath, and then breakfast.

New boarding passes were issued as we were informed that a new aircraft was arriving to pick us up before noon of that day. We were shuttled back to the airport where our passports were returned to us.

We were once again in high spirits as we thought that our long wait had finally come to an end.

But noontime came and went. Lunch was served at the restaurant on the second floor of the huge airport.

Still there was no sign of the new aircraft.

A few passengers started to complain. Many had already missed their connecting flights to various destinations. There was a growing sense of restlessness.

We in the team were not exempt from this. Some of us began to voice our doubts to one another, and the heart cry of the four of us women in team was: "I want to go back home..."

It was getting dark, and we had been in Ho Chi Minh for nearly 20 hours. We decided to once again come before the Lord and open our hearts to Him. We also waited to listen to what He had to speak to each one of us individually.

What an amazing time we had in His presence. Right in that pre-departure area, where others were waiting in agitation, some in quiet resignation, all of us unsure of when we were ever going to leave that place, God our Father met with us.

We were in a wilderness of sorts... like refugees with no legal status. We were out of our comfort zones. And we were uncertain of what was going to take place. But the Father spoke so gently that He was pruning us, allowing us a first hand experience of waiting on Him, learning endurance and perseverance, going through discomfort without a complaining spirit... because the work ahead of us required an undivided heart. He didn't want us to lose our focus, our upward gaze, for there was much work to be done in the days and weeks ahead.

We came out of that prayer time renewed and refreshed.

Dinner was served. But we as a team had had enough of airport meals. We decided to celebrate the fresh word God had spoken over Burger King and Illy coffee. One hour later, the new aircraft from Brunei had arrived, and by nine o'clock, we were once again airborne.

We had our belongings with us, and we all sat at our original seats. The flight stewards on board were very professional and catered to our every need. It was as if nothing happened. This new flight from Ho Chi Minh was God's beautiful and wise way of redeeming us from the trauma and anxiety we experienced on the earlier flight.

The flight was smooth and we landed at our destination past midnight of May 10, seven hours after we took off from Vietnam, exactly one day after we were supposed to have arrived.

What happened in the next eighteen days of ministry will forever be recorded in the annals of heaven. There were breakthroughs, deep level healing of emotional wounds, cleansing from demonic defilement, and cutting off of ungodly soul ties that have hindered God's people from moving forward in their destinies and kingdom assignments. Marriages were strengthened and families revived as Raffi and Honey shared the painful story of how God healed their broken marriage. Children who had dishonored their parents repented for doing so, and many of them called up a mother or a father and asked for forgiveness. There was instant reconciliation after years of being estranged from one another.


On the day of our return to the Philippines, we were all aware of the importance of the Vietnam experience to this ministry trip.


The emergency landing that we experienced was not an emergency landing for a malfunctioning aircraft. It was an emergency landing for a malfunctioning team who needed to be given focus, a vision, and a clear sense of calling for this season of their lives... that together we may be obedient to the assignment mapped out for us.

God wanted us to be his agents of healing and reconciliation, to prepare the Church, the bride... that she may stand before God spotless, without blemish, in all her radiant beauty.

Once again, it was all about obedience and God-focus.

Yes, true to what I had written, I am on a new spiritual journey. After what I have gone through this past month, I will never be the same again.

To Him alone be all the glory for what He has accomplished.

Official RBA Facebook update (May 8, 2012)
Local News on www.brudirect.com (May 10, 2012)


 Below is the song of worship that God has given to me for this stage of my journey.

Joshua 2: Receiving Instructions, Packing Provisions

Jordan River

photo source

Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and they set out from Acacia Grove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over.

So it was, after three days, that the officers went through the camp; and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.

Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.”

- Joshua 3:1-4






Obedient One and I arrived from Thailand on Sunday night.


That was only one week ago, but already that lovely Chiang Mai experience seems like a beautiful dream of a faraway land. The hundreds of pictures stored in my photo file, as well as in my own memory, will serve as reminders of this part of my journey as the new year continues to unfold before my eyes.


It will not be easy to forget the love and the kindness that was poured into our lives by our Thai friends. It was God's way of feeding our spirits - the care and the thoughtfulness, the warmth of the friendship, the beauty of the places we went to, the delicious food... all these and more gave us the message that we were special. Our spirits were truly refreshed.


But now, I am back to the business of living life and facing what lies ahead of me.


The very next morning after I got back, my friend Trudi and I left the house early to attend the first day of the Elijah House School of Prayer Ministry, Level Two.


Determined to get some Chiang Mai pictures posted on this blog before the Elijah House school started the following morning, I had no choice but to stay up past midnight last Sunday.


I wanted to do that because this school marks a new chapter in my life, and the Chiang Mai experience was a kind of marker in my journey.


Just twelve hours after my flight from Bangkok arrived in Manila, a new chapter began.



I...me...my...


Those pronouns make it seem like it's all about me, but actually... no, it isn't.


It is all about God, and the story that He is writing.


As I left the house on Monday morning, I had a clear sense that I was on the pathway of my destiny.




Things do not just happen. There is a time, a purpose, a reason, a season for everything that happens in our lives. There are no random events. Life is not a matter of mere chance. That I truly believe.


It blows my mind to realize that I am not a mere pawn in this great big universe, tossed and thrown about. I am an active participant in my life story.


I am not a victim of circumstances. Each one of us is created with freedom to choose how we are to respond to what comes our way.


I can choose to obey, or to disobey.... to forgive or nurture the wound... to yield, or harden my heart.... erect boundaries to shield my heart from hurt, keeping love out as well...or give myself permission to be vulnerable.


Sadly though, any wrong response hinders God from working, and delays the new sub-plots from full development... leading to a dead end that could take years to untangle before we can move on again.


It's not that God is not able. He is able, and willing... however, He also respects the freedom we have to decide what road we want to travel on.


But God always desires to bring us to a spacious place, a place of freedom. And we can go there, if we really want to...


The choice is mine to make.



And now the two week Elijah House Basic School 2 is already halfway through.


In just one week of going through the teaching and receiving prayer ministry, God has sifted through my heart, given me deeper understanding of what has happened in my life, helped me sort through some of my unresolved issues, and has drawn me closer to His heart of love.


I am looking forward to the second week of the school.




This is the way...walk in it.


This is the Inner Voice... that still, small voice in my heart showing me the way to go.


I am always grateful for the guidance.


Stay close...look for the signposts along the way. It is easy to be distracted... to be weighed down... to lose track... to be short sighted.


I need to stay close to Him.


He is not only Creator.


He is Sustainer... Healer... Redeemer.


He is Light, and He is Truth.


He leads and shows the way.


Yes, the plans of God for this new year are unfolding... He is giving instructions, and I want to listen... above all, to obey.

Now arise, get out, and return...

Follow the cloud...

I will instruct you and teach you
in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye. Psalm 32:8


Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying
"This is the way, walk in it,"
Whenever you turn to the right hand,
Or whenever you turn to the left. Isaiah 30:21

One of the benefits of being God's child is the guidance that He provides every step of the way. The Bible passages I have quoted above from Psalm 32:8 and Isaiah 30:21 have been true in my life again and again.

When the president of Maejo University gave Ernie the invitation to extend his work contract for another year after it ends this September, we have both asked the Lord to show us His will regarding it.

On our hearts were the desire to go back home for good. Ernie was needed back at the university where he works, and we knew we needed to be back with our family again. Yet, we did not want to make a decision according to our personal agenda, we wanted to be sure it was what God wanted.

Lynne Hammond says,

Many Christians miss the will of God in their lives. Instead of waiting on Him, they just try to figure out in their brains what the best course of action would be...but God's plan isn't in our brains, it's in our hearts! And if we want to know what that plan is, we must allow the Holy Spirit to bring it up from our hearts and reveal it to us in times of quiet waiting. (from Lynne Hammond's book, The Master is Waiting)

Ernie was in Hawaii on a speaking assignment for two weeks in July. He had to give his decision before July ended, to give time for his papers to be processed for the new financial year.

On July 23, while reading in the book of Genesis to continue my study on the life of Joseph, I was struck by these lines from Genesis 31:

Then the Lord said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you." (verse 3)

"I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family." (verse 13)

The lines were just the very confirmation that we were waiting for. Somehow I knew that our stay here was over. I believe that God has already accomplished what had to be done in our lives for this season. Still, my God favored me with a specific answer to the prayer I made just a few weeks before Ernie left for Hawaii.

Another season has ended; now we must pull up our tent pegs, fold up our tent, and move on to follow where God's cloud leads.

With this revelation and clear direction for the next step, my heart is at peace. While it has given me sadness at having to leave, I have to face reality. We can't live in two physical worlds at the same time.

I know that this was just a healing season for Ernie and me, a kind of incubation period for God's deeper purposes to be birthed in our souls.

Because we knew we were obeying our Master, we did what needed to be done these past two months with a sense of purpose and resolution.

What a good parent God the Father is! He does guide His children with His eye. As a parent I know exactly what that phrase means. When my children were small, I always wanted to be sure they were safe. I would often watch what they were doing. I wasn't literally holding them, but my eye was on them. One eye on them, and another eye on whatever it was I was doing at the moment. Even up to their teenage years, my husband and I would "keep an eye" on them. Admonish them, encourage them, or give them advice and words of guidance, whenever needed.

Now I am ready to return to the land of my family. His sure word says, arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family. Very specific.

It was meant for Jacob, but it has also become His rhema word to me.

God was taking up Jacob on his promise that if God will be with him, and protect him, and lead him back, only then would he make God his God... a rather self-serving kind of promise, nevertheless, God honors it.

And just as God called Jacob to return to Bethel, I also hear the same call.

Pastor Ron Thomas says that the journey back to Bethel begins when we once again hear and obey the voice of God.

I am struck by the specific things that Jacob did in response when he finally heard the voice of God.

Before returning to the land of his forefathers, Jacob did re-visit Bethel. A humbled, more subdued, much wiser man, compared to the impudent and arrogant lad that he was twenty years before, he says to his wives and children:

Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone...

So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel)...he and all the people who were with Him. And he built an altar there and called the place El Bethel...

Then God appeared to Jacob again... And God said to him, "Your name is Jacob; your name shall not be called Jacob anymore, but Israel shall be your name." So He called his name Israel. (Genesis 35:2-3, 6-7, 9-10)

In Bethel, Jacob encounters God in a fresh way. God reminds him that he is no longer Jacob, but Israel. God also speaks to Him again the covenant promise that He gave to Abraham and Isaac.

Within these few remaining days here, I am seeking God's heart. I don't need to go to a literal Bethel, for I know that Bethel is in my heart. I just need to purify myself, cleanse my soul of things that have weighed me down or distracted me.

Just as Bethel was a place of revival and restoration for Jacob, I seek God again in my own Bethel. I want to be reminded of who I am, and be reconnected to God's eternal purposes for me for the next step of my journey.

Yes, much remains to be done when we return home but it will not be simply a picking up from where I left off.

I return to my homeland as a new person. Having gone through an inner transformation, and equipped with fresh revelation and new lessons, I am ready to face another level, another season, another breakthrough.