It's All Greek to Me: Part 4

Traveling mercies n. <Prayer> (origin - Christianese) - prayers for safe travels, often includes the phrase "over the highways and the byways" even though no one knows what a byway is. It is a prayer for deliverance from mishaps or tragedy during a trip.

Bianca and I decided that traveling mercies have not really been our strong suit:

1. The mistake with our seats that had us seated separately on the flight over
2. The exploding luggage (my poor bag)
3. The run to the train (that resulted in a fall for Bianca)
4. The strike that delayed our flight out of Rome, and then just our horrible experience with Aegean airlines

Today, or rather last night, we had the bright idea that this morning we would go to an island! The weather has been pretty warm, so we thought it would be perfect. We had to make our way to the Piraeus port to catch a ferry to Hydra island at 9 am. This is how our day went:

1. 7:07 AM - Awaken. Hurriedly get dressed and ready to head to the Port. 
2. 7:50 AM - Walk to Syntagma station - we actually know where this is. We buy two metro tickets each (one for the train and one for our bus transfer to the port)
3. 8:05 AM - We just miss the first train. 
4. 8:15 AM - We are on the train! We don't know what any of the signs say, nor do we actually know where to get off. But there is a picture of a boat at the end of the line...so that must be it! 
5. 8:33 AM - We walk out of the train station and right into a crowd of people waiting for the #843 bus. Of course all of those people are also going to the port! Yay, we'll just follow them onto the bus. 
6. 8:45 AM - The bus transfer was only supposed to be a mile...
7. 8:50 AM - "Bianca, I think we should get off this bus..." Bianca: "hmm..."
8. 8:53 AM - (doors have opened and closed, we're moving further and further away from the port) - "Are we getting off?" 
9. 8:54 AM - We jump off the bus. Bianca attempts to speak to a few people, but I know what's up "no speakiti any English"
10. 8:54:30 AM - We start to notice we are in the sketchiest place in the world. 
11. 8:55 AM - Panic is starting to set in
12. 8:57 AM - "There are cabs!" We immediately jump into a cab. I'm thinking: we are defeated. Let's go home. So I'm shocked when Bianca says: "Piraeus Port." She will not surrender.
13. 9:13 AM - Arrive at ticket office. Where can we go? Nowhere but Aegina at 10 AM. 

Where are our traveling mercies?! Just kidding. They were in that cab at #12. Had that cab not come...

view from the boat

Fast forward. We arrive on the island. We realize we know NOTHING about this island. And it's not because we switched islands due to missing the first boat. We didn't know anything about Hydra either. We had no plan. We just jumped a boat, and once ashore said: "now what?" No one answered us.

feet in the Mediterranean

So, on the island we ate food, had some awesome baklava with pistachio ice cream, saw historical sites older than anything I've ever seen. Ever. Went to a little museum. Put our feet in the Mediterranean, and experienced a Greek line (queue) boarding the boats.

The Greek line is an angry mob of geriatric heavyweights. There is no actual line, per se. It's literally younger people getting elbowed, pushed, and ultimately run over by really old Greek people. When I say really old, I mean age spots. HARDCORE age spots. I didn't feel right pushing back, but I had to get pretty aggressive at points. What made me mad was that all the pushing and shoving happened even on the return trip and we had assigned seats. WHY? I can't steal your seat!

Anyway, my thought today comes from Psalms 139. To me, it kind of goes to show why I don't really need to pray for traveling mercies.

steps leading up to oldest place ever

O Lord, You have searched me and known me.  
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar. 
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
- Psalms 139:1-3

I'm a huge fan of this verse because it lets me know that God is so completely aware of me. He knew when we woke up that we were dumb. He understood that we had no idea what we were doing or where we were going. God "scrutinized" our path. Which means He thoroughly examined and inspected our comings and goings today. Knowing that God is watching that closely, plus knowing that He is an ever present help in a time of need kinda makes the panic at 8:55 AM seem stupid. I know that bad stuff happens, even to Christians, but that stuff didn't happen because God was unaware. It doesn't happen because traveling mercies were absent. Even in bad things, God is with us.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,” 
Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.
-Psalms 139:11-12

My darkness is still light to God, because He sees when I'm blinded. It's kinda deep. 

I just realized that I didn't add a devotional prayer to yesterday...I can't go back. Plus, I finished re-writing that one today so today's prayer does double duty.

Lord, thank you for being so aware and mindful of us. It is comforting to know that your eyes are upon us, and that we are never alone in this world. We might do things haphazardly, but you are always in control. We thank you for your sovereignty in all situations. End results are your domain, and we thank you for the good that You promised would work out of all things. In Jesus name, Amen!

It's 10:15 PM. I'm going to bed. Race day tomorrow. Eek!! Pray for us! Wish us well! Marathon stories coming soon!