They Missed the Plane

My friend told me the story a short while ago. It has stayed with me ever since. On one level, it’s a humorous story. But on a deeper, more spiritual level, it holds a critically important lesson for all of us.

Bob and his friend arrived at the airport for a flight somewhere on the east coast. They purposely arrived three hours early to avoid any unforeseen complications enroute. They made their way past security and settled themselves comfortably in the chairs in the waiting area at the terminal gate. During those hours, while they sat and talked, three planes arrived, disembarked their passengers, loaded new ones, and took off. Finally, Bob looked at his watch. He realized something was amiss

They walked up to the gate counter and asked the flight attendant when their flight was due to arrive. The woman looked puzzled and asked their names. Then she checked her roster and told them their plane had just pulled away from the gate. She had called their names three times but when they did not show up, she gave their seats to standby flyers.

Bob and I both got a good chuckle when he finished telling his story. Two friends waiting for their plane, enjoying each other’s company – and oblivious to the world around them.

I thought of them when I read this passage in Mark’s gospel a few days later. In speaking of His return, Jesus said it this way: 

“But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 33 “Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come. 34 It is like a man away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay on the alert. 35 Therefore, be on the alert—for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 in case he should come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 What I say to you I say to all, ‘Be on the alert!’” (Mark 13:32-37)

There is good reason why the Lord, in these six verses, warns everyone to “Take heed; Be on the alert.” Five times, if you count them.

Of course, what happened to Bob and his friend could happen to any of us – missing our flight while waiting at the terminal gate because we’re so involved with our conversation. But, likewise, any of us can miss the call of God because we’re so busy with the affairs of this life that we are not paying attention to the next.

Please, don’t let that happen to you. Jesus was making a most serious point in those last verses of Mark 13. And that point is this: Take heed to what He has told us in His Scriptures. Don’t get drowsy. Stay alert to his voice. Don’t be so involved in the affairs of this life that you miss out on eternal life.

“For you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— in case he should come suddenly and find you asleep. What I say to you I say to all, ‘Be on the alert!’”