Remember

This year at BFA, “remember” is our theme. To remember is biblical, of course. Depending on translations and exactly whom you ask, the word or concept appears roughly 250 times in Scripture. We are told to remember our Creator (Ecclesiastes 12), to remember God’s commands (Numbers 15), to remember his provisions (Matthew 16), to remember his wondrous works (1 Chronicles 16), to remember how far we have fallen (Revelation 2), to remember the greatness of salvation (Isaiah 46), and to remember others in our prayers (Hebrews 13). Sadly, it seems no matter how often I read the call to remember - a concept that sounds so easy on the surface - I fall short all the time. It requires intentionality, and sometimes I’m disheartened by the fact that it’s a struggle because I fully believe that the myriad of ways in which God has shown himself faithful to me personally are worthy of being remembered.

One thing I’ve found that helps is a symbol. Often in Scripture, active remembering is accompanied by an active marking. The Israelites crossed the Jordan under Joshua’s leadership and were told to grab 12 stones to set up as a memorial, a marking to remind future generations of the miracle. God himself set the symbol of a rainbow in the sky after he “remembered Noah” and so that we forever remember his promise to never flood the earth again. Perhaps my favorite symbolic marking is the taking of communion. “As often as you eat and drink it, do it in remembrance of me” (1 Cor 11:24-25). The Lord knows how fallible our minds are, how easily we forget or ignore, so he gives us symbols to help. It’s why remembering so often appears in imperative form.

To remember well is an honorable choice and can lead to deeper intimacy with the Lord. That’s our prayer for our students and our whole community this year. In Isaiah 63, the prophet sets about to actively recall God’s faithfulness to Israel (v. 7-14), and it overflows into a heartfelt prayer on their behalf (v. 15-19). I'm still hunting for the right symbol as I seek to convey this theme to our Middle School students, but for now, I'll tell them that remembering is for our good. It rights our perspective on the past because it spots God in the picture, allowing him to show us how he was present all along. "I will remember the things the LORD has done!" (Psalm 77:11).

Opening HS chapel!

pc: BFA Communications Team

5 Tips for the Solo Traveler

As a single person working internationally, it’s natural that I engage in solo travel quite frequently. Whether for work or play, traveling alone presents a few unique challenges, and here are my personal tips that I live by, not because I’m an expert by a long shot, but merely because these work for me.

Tip #1 - No rollerboard carry-on

Right off the bat, I know I’m contradicting other solo travelers who say this is their main hack in order to avoid checking a bag and risking it getting lost. Honestly, while lost luggage is a pain and I’ve had my fair share, I find the hassle of a rollerboard both in airports and on the planes doesn’t outweigh the risk. Maybe the reason is that I’m generally on a cheaper ticket, so I'm boarding near the end and hunting for a space, or perhaps it’s the unpacking and repacking of the bags at security that annoys me, and most definitely it’s in part the frustrating airlines who have started to weigh the carry-ons that have all swayed me this way. My go-to is to check a bag (even if it’s small and the size of a carry-on) and then to board with a backpack only. For short trips: backpack only. If there’s room, I’ll happily put it up in the bins, but I also know it can always fit under the seat in front of me. I feel less stressed boarding last, and the airlines rarely weigh a backpack. And yes, there’s always a spare pair of underwear tucked at the bottom as well as my toothbrush.

Tip #2 - Speed up Security

The challenge of security for me is to lessen the number of things that I will have to put in bins. Since the bins will definitely already have to contain my backpack, my jacket, and my laptop, I seek to speed up the process with these other minor suggestion:

• Slip-on/off shoes: Not all airports make you take off your shoes if they’re clearly made of cloth and rubber. Just in case they do, I avoid wearing laces when I fly.

• Toiletries: Having a hard bar of soap and dry shampoo means that the baggie of toiletries I need to pull out typically only contains my toothpaste. And often, if I get the mini size, they don’t catch it or care.

• No belt. Ever. Elastic waist bands all the way when I fly.

Tip #3 - In-Flight Hydration

While flying, I accept absolutely every liquid they want to throw at me, preferably extra bottles or cups of water. If I don’t want to drink it then and there, I pour it into the water bottle in my backpack. Way too often when I’ve landed somewhere, I still have a trek ahead of me, whether by train or car, and sometimes accessing water before I leave the airport isn’t an option. Plus, planes are so dehydrating!

Tip #4 - Post-Flight Bathroom Run

When I land at my international destination and really need the bathroom (which I usually do because of all the liquids), nonetheless, I never duck into the first restroom I see. Here’s my order of operations:

1. Briskly follow the signs toward the exit in order to beat most of my fellow passengers to immigration
2. Once I reach baggage claim, find the toilet.
3. Then retrieve my checked bag.

This saves me both from standing in longer immigration lines and from having to take my checked bag into the bathroom stall with me.

Tip #5 - Compression Socks

This has less to do with solo travel and is simply my age showing itself. Compression socks are my latest purchase and practice, and wow can I tell the difference. My restless leg syndrome has decreased dramatically. 

So there you have it! As I said, in no way do I claim to be an expert on travel, but I hope these personal preferences and silly ideas entertain and maybe will even help should you find yourself traveling solo in the near future.

recent flight when I found my village from the air