A couple of years ago I boarded a plane in Denver and headed back home to Los Angeles after a busy lecture tour. I was looking forward to some quiet time on the flight and was planning on having a couple of solid hours to just kick back and not think about much.
Once I was seated, I took one of the magazines from the seat pouch in front of me and started working on a Sudoku puzzle in the back. I was about halfway finished with the puzzle as the plane began to speed down the runway for take-off, and just at the moment of lift-off there was a loud bang. Clearly this was not normal, but we kept flying.
The thought came to me that I should pray, but I looked around and since no one else seemed overly concerned, I ignored that thought and kept doing my own thing. I had in my mind that I was going to relax—and at times like that it can be tempting to just not feel like praying. The thought that I should pray came to me more than once, but each time I pushed it out.
