Over a period of years, I went from disliking the smell of jet fuel to feeling extremely uncomfortable eating on an airplane, and eventually to fearing flying so much that even hearing planes overhead bothered me. The issue started to consume me, and though I wanted to overcome this fear through prayer, I didn’t know where to begin. Then my husband was asked to relocate to another country for work, which created a sense of urgency for me to get over my fear. 

Aside from this, I had finally started to feel at home in the city to which we had moved just a few years before. I was unhappy with the prospect of having to start over yet again, especially in a place where I didn’t speak the language and was unfamiliar with the culture.  I could see only problems ahead, and my already fragile peace of mind was upended.

A few days after we received the news of my husband’s pending relocation, a friend called and told me about an issue she was having with a service provider. After we ended the conversation, I thought, in turmoil: “God, You are supposed to be in control, but everywhere I look in this world, I see nothing but trouble. What are You doing?”