"Lost in Hanoi" by Rev. Weldon Bares

I recently spent a couple of weeks on a small group tour of Vietnam. In my sermon on Sunday, I told our congregation about an experience I had in Hanoi one day. I had left our group to do some exploring on my own to see a few things that were not on our itinerary.

I wanted to see St. Joseph Church, a beautiful Catholic Cathedral that was built in 1886. I also wanted to see Huu Tiep Lake where parts of the wreckage from a B-52 shot down during the Vietnam War remain as a historical relic.

There is no Uber in Vietnam, but there is “Grab,” which is the same thing. So, I decided to catch a Grab to the Cathedral and then walk to the lake, using Google Maps on my cell phone to guide me. A good plan, right? What could possibly go wrong?

At first, it went according to plan. The Cathedral was amazing and the walk to the lake was long, but so interesting. But then as I was starting the long walk back to the hotel, my Internet inexplicably went out. It went from 5G to no G. Oh no! I could no longer use Google Maps.

So now, I had no directions. I couldn’t call a Grab. I didn’t know the language and couldn’t read the signs. So, I was genuinely lost in Hanoi. Thankfully, around 20 minutes later, the Internet inexplicably came back.

But being lost was really one of the best parts of my trip. I saw things that I would not have seen otherwise. I was more attentive. I noticed details. I slowed down.

And I was reminded once again that life is sometimes a journey where we just cannot see the full map. The Lord shows us the way, but we only see step by step. Perhaps that is why Paul said, “We walk by faith.” (II Corinthians 5:7) Being lost in Hanoi turned out to be a blessing.