“God has no favorites!” - - Romans 2:11
Two adults, each driven by irrational fears, head for an emotional collision.
As Kaleeb approached the door to the plane he tried to shake off the unsettling feeling; with one last look back he boarded the aircraft. He was a veteran flyer, yet he hated the idea. He’d developed an illogical fear, powered by anxious thoughts of despair and misery. Ever since 9/11, passengers looked at him differently, suspiciously, distrustfully.
Fueled by anger as her taxi approached the airport, Mary was running late as usual. Before the vehicle came to a complete stop, she tossed some bills at the driver, gathered her bags and raced toward airport security. The line was long - 30 minutes long. She explained her predicament and cut her way to the front of the line. An Agent with nothing better to do removed several bottles from her carry-on bag which exceeded the 4 ounce legal limit.
Mary was on the verge of falling apart. She envisioned missing her flight and having to spend the night on the airport floor. She exited security and sprinted to her gate. By some miracle they were holding the plane for her.
Sweating uncomfortably and blood pressure spiking, Mary arrived at her seat and saw Kaleeb seated next to hers. Visibly disgusted, she called for a flight attendant.
“How may I help?” inquired the pleasant stewardess.
"Are you serious?" Mary said indignantly. "I refuse to sit next to this terrorist? You’ll have to change my seat!" Confused and shaken, Kaleeb sat without responding.
Annoyed by Mary’s callousness, the flight attendant tried to remain calm. As a black woman, she knew all too well the damning effects of bigotry and narrow mindedness. "As you can see Ma’am, all the seats are occupied, but I'll go check."
She returned moments later. "Madam, there aren’t any empty seat in Economy Class. But I spoke to the Captain and he confirmed that we have one unoccupied seat in the First Class cabin.”
Mary smiled, but before she could respond, the Stewardess continued.
“It’s highly unusual for us to allow an Economy Class passenger to move to First Class. However, given the circumstances, the Captain thinks that it would be shameful to force a traveler to sit next to an unpleasant person."
Turning to Kaleeb, she said, "Sir, if you’d be so kind to gather your belongings, we have reserved a seat for you in First Class."
Hating people because of their religious beliefs is wrong . . . it doesn't matter which party does the hating. God created only one race – the human race, and only one true relgion - love!
Father, You show no partiality. Grant, that Your life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart, that barriers crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease, so that we may live in peace. Amen
