Christine Sneeringer wasn’t supposed to be at the Fort Lauderdale airport last Friday when a man walked through the baggage claim and shot to death five people and injured several others. Her flight to JFK then London left an hour before the shooting. Some would call it bad luck that she missed her flight. Sneeringer now calls it a “divine appointment.” Her harrowing yet providential odyssey all began with a slight miscalculation. 

Divine Appointment

Sneeringer said in her Christian Today article that while trying to check her bag, she realized it was overweight. She was told she had to remove 15 pounds and redistribute to her backpack and carry-on luggage. The miscalculation cost her enough time that when she was finished, she was told that she would need to get on the next flight — and pay an additional $300 charge for the privilege. In frustration, she texted a friend about what happened. Her friend replied, “So sorry. God must have some divine appointment for you.”

“Her words caused me to change my perspective and I became open to a God assignment,” Sneeringer said. “I began to ask Him: Why am I here? Is there something you want me to do, someone you want me to meet? If so, please show me.”

Prayer for Peace

Shortly after she arrived at her gate the shooting began. Sneeringer described the ensuing chaos: “[T]here was mayhem in the terminal with everyone running and screaming, trying to get outside of the building onto the tarmac.” Eventually the gunman was captured and passengers were allowed back in the terminal, but not for long. Ninety minutes later another incident, or so they thought, had occurred and once again people ran for their lives. “This time I found refuge under the gate agent counter, crouched inside next to a garbage can … I stayed inside the cabinet, praying for God’s peace to fill the building.” Eventually, they realized the second “incident” was an unfounded scare — but people were instructed to stay where they were until authorities secured the area.

God Assignment

After a couple of hours, Sneeringer realized that no one was going to be flying out — or leaving the building, for that matter. As time passed, people became hungry and cranky, with little to eat but peanuts and pretzels from a Delta pilot and water that someone else handed out. After the first incident the food court did not reopen. “That’s when I remembered I had a couple boxes of protein bars that I had moved from my checked bag to my backpack,” she said. “I pulled them out and went from passenger to passenger offering what little I had, asking ‘Are you hungry? Would you like lemon or chocolate?'”

When she ran out of protein bars, she realized how many people didn’t get one and were still hungry. She found an open shop in the concourse and decided that she’d buy more bars to share. “I asked Ana, the store manager, for a bulk discount on snacks and bottled water, but when she found out my plan was to buy them to give it all away she just gave me a basket and let me fill it up at no charge!” The manager also instructed one of her employees to help Sneeringer distribute the bars and water. 

But the manager’s generosity didn’t stop at one basket. Over and over Sneeringer filled the basket and handed out food and water. Over the course of a couple of hours, Sneeringer said she gave out at least 10 baskets of food. “I shared smiles and laughter with lots of beautiful people throughout the terminal, and I knew in my heart this was my God assignment.”

She realized that God was in control and placed her in that situation at that moment for that purpose. She wrote:

The Bible says in Proverbs 16:9 that a man’s heart plans his way but the Lord directs his steps. My plan that day was to get home as quickly as possible for the start of my new semester abroad in England, but God had other ideas. He needed someone on the ground to be His hands and feet in the terminal that day, and I’m honored He chose me. I’m an ordinary traveler who serves an extraordinary God. When we partner with Him there’s no telling what’s possible. Eventually I did make it out, two days later from Miami. The next time you experience a flight delay or a sudden change of plans, be open to God working through you because you just might be getting your next assignment.