12584_aJean McClure is our featured guest speaker for Virtue Open House, November 18–19. Here is an excerpt from her most recent book, The Trunk: Treasures of God’s Faithfulness.

Our time in England had come to a close. What a treasured time that was for us and for our walks with the Lord! We left on a train for London and Heathrow Airport. We had a charter flight to catch from the tickets our parents had given us, and so we started on our journey home. By this time, I was pregnant with our first child and getting sick several times a day. So I was not up to snuff, as they say, and did not feel like traveling.

As we traveled down to London on the train, Don realized that he had left our passports in the safe at Capernwray. He took me to a Bed and Breakfast near Heathrow and I went to bed. He returned to London on the train and waited for our passports to be hand-delivered. He had called the school and they were sending them by way of the conductor; it was truly “special delivery.”

He looked exhausted in the morning when he came for me. We boarded the plane and headed for home. The plane was so heavy from all of the students and their luggage going home that we seemed to sag in mid-air as we took off.

As we flew over the Atlantic Ocean, I slept through the dark night, and Don prayed. He hadn’t told me, but he was worried about how we were going to get home. Our plane was landing at the Oakland airport in the San Francisco area. However, we didn’t have a ticket to Los Angeles (which was close to home for us). The other problem was that Don had only $20 left in his pocket.

A pregnant wife, no money, and no way home!

“Lord,” he prayed, “I need some help here. We need a ride from Oakland to Los Angeles.”

He didn’t tell me how bad things were. He let me sleep, and went to Jesus with his problems. Needless to say, he didn’t get much rest that flight, but God was at work through it all.

The next day we landed in Oakland. In those days (the early 70’s), you would exit the plane down stairs that led directly on to the airstrip to the gate. The “gate” was literally a gate in a chain-link fence. As we walked toward the fence, to our astonishment, we saw Don’s parents waiting for us on the other side. What joy and relief flooded our hearts! They said they decided to drive up the coast (almost an eight-hour drive) to pick us up because they hadn’t seen us in nine months. They graciously said that they would understand if we would rather take a flight home instead of a long drive.

Isn’t God amazing? We were more than thrilled to get in their car, head for a delicious, juicy American hamburger, and a wonderfully clean bed in a hotel—their treat—and then ride home with them. Two parents never looked so good to a travel-weary, hungry, desperate young couple.

They didn’t know we didn’t have a flight home, or that I was pregnant and feeling so ill, or that we only had $20 in our wallet.

Don didn’t call our parents or ask someone else for help when we needed it. He went to God expectantly, putting all his trust in God, and God in His great faithfulness met us there.

My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

—Philippians 4:19