Hi, I'm Joni Eareckson Tada and welcome to Joni and Friends.
If you fly nowadays, if you frequent the airport, then you know that things have not gotten easier, have they, in this economic downturn we’re in. If anything, it’s getting harder to fly, isn’t it – lost luggage, cancelled flights, not as many direct routes as there used to be, and, of course, the ever-changing procedures at the security checkpoints.
And that goes for me in this wheelchair, too. You’ll always hear me whispering a prayer before I enter into the security area. I pray for a good attitude. Really I do. Because sometimes I’ve been asked the silliest questions like they can see my hands don’t work and I can’t walk. I tell them I'm a quadriplegic and paralyzed, but nevertheless, these security guys always ask me to take off my shoes at which point I assure them that’s something I'm really not capable of doing. But I say it with a smile. Often I'll give them a little tract about my testimony and I will thank them for the good job they are doing. They always give me a funny look; I think they are surprised by my attitude – I don’t think many people actually thank them, but I do. Because whether it’s leaning forward, or having my shoes removed, or being patted down or whatever, I do not mind a thorough going over in this wheelchair of mine. Why? Well, let me read for you this little story that was in the Wall Street Journal just a week ago.
Listen to this, it says, “The Transportation Security Administration posted a story on its blog about a security catch at a Los Angeles International Airport checkpoint when a man in a wheelchair was caught trying to smuggle cocaine in two packages taped to his abdomen. This is why, according to the TSA, the agency tells its screeners to give a good going over to people in wheelchairs when they enter the security checkpoint.” Is that something, or what! The article goes on to say that “Senior travelers have long complained about excessive screening procedures by security agents, and many travelers have scratched their heads as they watch screeners pat down a grandmother while more suspicious-looking characters prance on through. But the TSA has long held that wheelchairs could make smuggling easier, so it checks these folks carefully, often asking the disabled to walk through metal detectors.”
You know, I can see their point. I’ve heard of wheelchairs being used to conceal weapons, especially in the battery packs underneath the wheelchair. No wonder the Transportation Security Administration looks on me and little old grandmothers with some suspicion – think of all those things we could be concealing in our wheelchairs, right!
Friend, these are harried, hurried days and we don’t need to add to the stress with rotten dispositions. So would you join me in giving thanks in all circumstances? In fact, I’d like to send you my testimony tract called “Joni’s Story” that you can give to sky caps, ticket agents, gate agents, and security screeners… especially the security screeners. Tell them you’ve got a disabled friend who thinks they’re doing a pretty good job! Then you, too, can thank them for a job well done. Visit me today at joniandfriend.org and I'll send you three “Joni’s Story” tracts to share with people at airports. Because remember, you are a representative, you are an ambassador of the Lord Jesus when you’re on the road. So contact me at joniandfriends.org to ask for your three “Joni’s Story” tracts. Let me repeat that web address again: that’s joniandfriends.org. We have lots of things for you to look at and a place for you to even post your comments about your attitude when you go through a security checkpoint. Oh, and while you’re there on my radio page, click on our Family Retreat video. It is so much fun to watch and it’s my way of asking you to join us this summer as a volunteer at our Family Retreats. And, hey, please don’t forget to represent our Lord and Savior well, even when you take off your shoes at a security airport checkpoint.
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