“Come out! We’re about to land. You need to get your seat belt on!”
Margaret?
The cave was gone.
Lazarus gone.
Jesus gone.
He was back in the claustrophobic airplane bathroom.
What is happening to me? Where did the Bible land go?
“Come on, John! You have to get buckled!”
He got up and noticed the piece of paper on the floor. He bent down and picked it up. This time he noticed an additional line:
3L3CTUS
John Le
Team Zion, Leader
What on earth was Team Zion? John had never led anything in his life, so this was obviously for another John Le.
“John, you gotta get out of there!”
He folded up the paper and shoved it in his pocket.
He moved the door slider. Red OCCUPIED back to green VACANT.
John expected to see a look of panic on the flight attendant’s face, but instead, all he saw was a small, sweet smile.
“Hello, friend, welcome back.”
John looked at the woman and wondered how on earth she knew he had been somewhere else.
He shook his head and hurried back to his seat.
What just happened to me?
John found his seat and quickly buckled up.
Minutes later, the plane’s wheels touched down.
As they taxied to the gate, John carefully put the picture of the lotus in his backpack. His mom would really love it. When the plane stopped, everybody stood even though it was going to take a while before they could exit.
When it was his turn, John got up and followed the line of passengers down the aisle.
Margaret was waiting for him on the jet bridge.
“Take care, John. Don’t forget that you’re a miracle to Jesus.” She gave him a quick hug before giving a farewell to the passenger behind him.
How did she know?
John concentrated on seeing his mother. She would be a comfort and would ease his nerves. She always knew the right things to say.
As he walked into the terminal, John scanned the crowd, looking for his mother. She was nowhere to be found. He took out his phone and texted her.
She didn’t reply.
John kept walking around, thinking maybe she’d gone to the bathroom.
That’s when a hand grabbed his shoulder.
John froze.
“Hey, man!”
John turned around and saw his dad standing there.
“Where’s Mom?”
“Good to see you too.”
Remember Me, John. I’m with you. You are important. I’m proud of you, and I love you very much.
“Where’s Mom?”
“I wanted to pick you up. Is that okay?”
John ignored the sarcasm. Things were different now. “Sure. I had an amazing trip.”
His dad nodded. “Yeah, your sister called after she dropped you off. Told us all about it.”
Even though John wanted to talk about meeting Jesus, he changed the subject. “Can you come to church with us Sunday?”
He waited for the quick deflection. His dad was about to give some reason why he couldn’t come.
But surprisingly, none came.
“Let’s go home, son.”
John followed his dad out of the terminal and through the parking lot. When they got to their car, John slipped into the passenger seat and plopped his backpack on the floor between his feet. He thought about everything he had learned on his Bible journey.
“I want you to come to church, Dad. Jesus loves you.”
There it was. John didn’t worry what his dad might say. Jesus had told John he was important. John let the words hang there between them as a challenge.
“Son, don’t tell me church is going to solve my problems. I’ve gone to church before and nothing’s happened.”
John stared out the window.
As they exited the airport, it started to rain.
Don’t you worry what happens. Don’t worry if your father laughs at you or has some ugly comment.
“I don’t know how it all works, but I do know that Jesus is real and that He loves us.”
John’s father kept his eyes on the wet road and didn’t reply.
After a few minutes of silence, his dad spoke. “Where was this Jesus when your mother lost her job? Huh? I know you thought I was a deadbeat dad for going to the casino, but we needed money to pay the bills, and without two incomes, I didn’t know what else to do.”
“Mom asked you not to.”
“I know. But I’m the leader of the family. It’s my responsibility to make sure bills get paid.”
“Will you come to church and give Jesus a chance?”
More silence.
The rain went from a drizzle to an all-out downpour. John’s dad pulled the car off the road into the first parking lot he saw.
Ironically, it was a church parking lot.
Staring at the rain-soaked windshield, John thought about his miraculous adventure. He remembered the dragon and how it pursued him when he took his eyes off Jesus.
His dad let out a big huff. “Son—”
John turned in his seat and faced his father.
“Son, I’m sorry.”
This was it. His father was actually going to offer an apology!
“It’s okay. I know it must be hard when there’s no money.”
“No, I’m sorry that I can’t give Jesus a chance.”
John frowned and turned away from his father and looked out his window again. There was a huge stone cross that had been erected in front of the church. It made him think of his Bible adventure again.
The cross …
What Jesus did on the cross for me is the greatest miracle of them all.
And Jesus went to the cross for my dad as much as me and everyone else who believes!
“Dad, we’re all broken. Jesus is the only One who can fix us.”
At that moment, John’s heart for his father turned from anger to sadness. He finally felt sorry for his dad. The only person that could cure him was Jesus.
John kept staring out his window at the cross.
The silence seemed to stretch on for more than minutes. John didn’t know what else to say. Finally, he choked out, “The Bible says that if you say Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the grave, you will be saved.”
John managed to turn and face his father.
“Son, please don’t waste your time on me.”
His father put the car in DRIVE and headed out of the church parking lot.
John felt a sting in his heart. The rain kept coming, and the darkness let it.
“Dad, I know I’m just a kid, but you always told me to stick up for what I really believe in. I’m sticking up for Jesus, and it feels great!”
“John, did you draw a lotus for your mother?”
He had forgotten all about the flower. John bent over and opened his backpack and fished out the unfinished drawing. “Yeah, here. Why?”
No answer. His father navigated the streets of Clark County until they came to their neighborhood.
When they got to their driveway, John’s father put the car in PARK but left the engine running. He grabbed John by the arm.
“What?” John asked.
“I have to apologize to your mother.”
“For what? And why did you ask about the lotus?”
“Your mother and I had a discussion earlier tonight about your grandmother. We talked about how she’s always comparing that lotus flower to Jesus. You know, how it grows up from the muddy bottom of a pond and becomes this beautiful creation.”
John didn’t know where his dad was going with all of this, but he nodded along the way to show he was listening.
“Your mom told me that she knew you were going to draw her a lotus while you were gone. She said that was what you do to remind her that with Jesus, everything will be all right.” John’s dad grabbed the drawing from him and held it up between them. “Well, I told her I didn’t think you would do that. Not because you didn’t want to do something nice for your mom. Just because I know how much you love to read, and your sister told us she bought you those Narnia books. I thought the long airplane ride would be the perfect chance for you to read them all.”
John saw his mother standing on the porch waving at them.
“You proved me wrong. Now, let’s go give this to your mother.”
His dad jumped out of the car holding the lotus drawing and ran up on the porch. When he got there, he gave John’s mother a huge hug. John got out and joined his parents on the porch. He gave his mother a big hug too.
“I told John I had to tell you I was wrong. Here’s what he made for you on the plane.” John’s dad handed the drawing to his mom.
“Oh, son, it’s beautiful.”
John smiled. He had to check his disappointment. He was hoping he could have convinced his dad to have faith in Jesus on the ride home from the airport. That would have been perfect. But he knew that Jesus was the One in charge and that things go according to His timing.
The whole Bible journey taught John to have faith, especially when things looked overwhelming and unchangeable. Jesus was big enough to take care of his dad’s heart.
“Jesus really loves us, and He is really going to make everything okay.”
Holding the lotus flower picture, John’s mom led him back in the house. “He sure does, son. And on that note, you have some new friends inside who are really wanting to meet you.”
When they got inside, John saw four kids—two boys and two girls—sitting on the couch in their living room.
John’s mom pointed to a boy with spiky blond hair. “This is Corey.”
“Hi, John. This is Jake, Kai, and Wren. We’re the rest of Team Zion. These are our parents.” The boy waved at the group of adults standing behind them. “Have a seat, John. I’ve got something to tell you that’s going to blow your mind.”
Team Zion? The paper from the airplane.
John sat down. He didn’t think anything could top what he had just witnessed with Jesus and all the miracles.
But what came out of the boy’s mouth did.