095 | In the Margins: God Was Already Setting the Table Before We Landed

What if God didn't wait for the sacred sites to start showing up — what if He was already at work somewhere over the Atlantic? We're going on the trip. After everything it took to get here — the broken bones, the months of recovery, the doubt, the pain that wouldn't quit — John and I are finally in the car, heading to Chicago, and wheels are up. And God doesn't wait. In this episode of In the Margins, I share two things that happened before we ever set foot on Turkish soil — and both of them left me with the same quiet certainty: God's fingerprints are all over this trip.   The first happens at our gate. We know absolutely no one else going on the Revelation Tour, and it never even crosses my mind that another traveler at our gate might be headed the same direction. And then a 6'8" man named Tim walks up and says, "You look like a couple of rednecks like us." What follows is the beginning of a friendship that — by the time this episode drops — has Tim and his wife Stacy driving five hours to spend the Fourth of July with us. Iron sharpens iron doesn't always look like a Bible study. Sometimes it looks like a middle seat on a nine-across transatlantic flight.   The second happens during our descent into Istanbul. If you've flown with me before, you know about my ears — that needle-piercing pain that can leave me plugged and hurting for days after landing. As I felt it beginning to surge, I prayed. Specific, faith-filled, out-loud-in-my-heart prayer. And within ten seconds of saying amen, the pain was completely gone. It didn't return for the descent. It didn't return for the short flight to Izmir. It didn't return for the entire trip home.   We hadn't even landed yet, and God had already shown up twice. I also share a prayer that my friend Lisa sent us on the way to the airport — one that shifted my whole posture for the trip from "God, what do you want to teach me?" to "God, who can I be a blessing to?" — and a handful of scriptures that have become some of my favorites about what it means to be an instrument of blessing in someone else's story. 🔑 Key Takeaways God Sets the Table Before You Even Know You're Hungry. The connections, the little miracles, the moments that feel like coincidences — they're often God's advance work. He's already preparing what you're walking into. Divine Appointments Don't Always Announce Themselves. Tim and Stacy didn't look like a God-ordained friendship. They looked like strangers at a gate. Pay attention anyway. Specific Prayer Invites Specific Answers. I didn't pray a vague "help me feel better" prayer. I prayed exactly what I needed and exactly what I believed. God answered exactly that. Iron Sharpens Iron — and God Chooses the Iron. Proverbs 27:17 isn't just a nice sentiment. God actively places people in our path to shape us. The question is whether we're paying attention when they arrive. Ask Not Only What God Will Teach You — But Who He'll Send You To. The posture of being a blessing changes everything about how you move through an experience. 🌿 Key Themes Divine Connections • God-Ordained Relationships • Iron Sharpens Iron • Proverbs 27:17 • Healing Prayer • Ear Pain Miracle • Being a Blessing • Ephesians 2:10 • Numbers 6:24-26 • God's Fingerprints • Revelation Tour Turkey Greece • Jonathan Cahn • In the Margins Series • Faith in Transit • Marriage and Travel • God Setting the Table 🤍 Who Will Benefit From This Episode Anyone who tends to look for God only in the "big" moments — and needs a reminder He's in the small ones too Believers who pray but wonder if God really hears the specific, personal requests Listeners who want to travel — or live — with eyes open to divine appointments Those who need encouragement that God goes ahead of them into new seasons Anyone who loves seeing how friendship and faith intertwine in unexpected places We had