From India To Italy


It was the trip of a lifetime, but completely unplanned. Four years ago this week my wife and I boarded a plane for Italy. We have never been to Italy before, but we love Italian food...especially Pizza Hut. I didn’t know if they would have great Italian food like that in Milan, but we went hoping we would find an Olive Garden.

Our trip to Italy sort of happened by mistake. I was scheduled to speak at the Commencement of Bethel Bible College in Kerala, India. We were pretty excited about the trip, had things planned out, purchased our airline tickets, but then our visas didn’t come through. The U.S. and India were in a little bit of a spat at the time over some immigration matters, and we were pawns on the chess board. Since we had already purchased our tickets we didn’t want to lose them. I called Emirate Air and was told our only option without paying more money was Milan, Italy. We went from disappointed to excited in a short amount of time. We cases in our reward points for hotel rooms, and off we flew to Italy.

“In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.” Proverbs 16:9

Sometimes life gets redirected.

That seems good at times, and at other times not so good. Either way we always get to hold on to the promise that Father is working all things together for our good. The Holy Spirit is an amazing choreographer, and Jesus is with us always. This doesn't often result in a trip to Europe, but the results are always in the hands of a God who loves us.

So off to Italy we flew. We didn’t meet Chef Boyardee himself, but we certainly appreciated the rich beauty and history of the country. In fact, it was one of the more beautiful places I’ve ever seen. If you want to go to Italy all you need to do is get yourself scheduled to speak at a College graduation, and have your visa denied. Or you could walk by faith and trust for Father to direct your path. That’s probably the better plan.

Following the Son,

James A Williams

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