Spain Minus 9 Days

On the ninth day from now, the GFC team will touch down in Spain. Please pray that we may serve as Christ's representatives in all the travel we do, from Charleston to Detroit to Amsterdam to Madrid by air and by rail to Osuna. Pray that we may touch the people we meet with comfort and compassion.
It's easy to hope that other people will take our discomfort, confusion, and troubles. It's especially easy to do that when we are on the road. After all, in a restaurant, if something isn't right, it isn't our fault. If a bag checked with an airline is lost, we didn't do it. If there are delays which mess up our connections, we didn't cause the delays. It's easy to blame other people and to take frustrations out on other people. But let's look briefly at God's attitude about this.
In Jeremiah 25.15 God tells Jeremiah "Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it" (ESV). God poured his righteous wrath out on the people of Jeremiah's time because of their unbelief. He made them a sign and sent them into exile, to restore them some 70 years later. But this show of God's wrath was a show to chastize the people and call them to repentance. On the cross of Christ, our Lord and Savior has drunk the entire cup of God's righteous wrath for our sin. This is how much our master cares for us. And not only did Jesus bear God's wrath in our place, he also showed restoration by rising from the dead as the firstfruits of the resurrection.
May we serve as Christ's representatives in all our travels, local or long-distance May we bring comfort to others, sheltering them from wrath. May we be quick to tell them about the Christ who enduredthe ultimate penalty for all sin and rose victorious to bring new life.