11/10/2025
Looking back at last month, I’m in awe of all we’ve been a part of. I had the honor of speaking at dozens of events around the country, participated in more than 100 media interviews, and shared Soul On Fire Movie with nearly half a million new friends at movie theaters nationwide.
It was a month overflowing with goodness, gratitude and grace.
And yet in the midst of that race, if I’m honest, I occasionally felt exhausted, a little lost and in need of others to guide me forward.
One of those moments occurred at Midway Airport.
After speaking in the morning in Chicago, I was scheduled to fly to Nashville for a live interview with Dave Ramsey that afternoon, followed by presenting at the Dove Awards that evening. It was a packed day!
After boarding the plane at Midway, I loaded my bag in the overhead compartment, took my seat and reached into my pocket to grab my phone…only to realize it wasn’t there.
The last time I’d used it was at a coffee shop in a completely different terminal.
I asked the flight attendant if I could sprint back to get it. She shook her head gently and said, “Sir, if you get off this plane, you won’t be able to get back on.”
While missing that flight wasn’t an option, missing that phone felt just as impossible. My entire schedule, contacts, and directions were all in that little device. Making all the events later that day would be difficult with the phone, and impossible without it.
And that’s when a pilot approached.
“You know,” he said, “it’s true that you can’t get off this plane…but it’s also true that I can. Tell me where it is, and I’ll go get it.”
I told him how far away it was and confessed that it might not even be there anymore.
He just smiled and said, “We have to at least try. Let’s get after it.”
Ten minutes later, the last person to board the plane was that same pilot, Chad.
He walked down the aisle with his head lowered, shoulders slumped. Then, after a beat, he broke into a grin, lifted his right hand high, and proudly held up my phone.
The plane erupted in applause.
My friends, tracking down my phone wasn’t Chad’s problem. He had every reason to stay comfortable, to stay seated, to stay focused on his schedule, his flight, his life.
But instead, he saw someone in need and decided to act.
That’s what exceptional service looks like. And even more than that, it’s most certainly what love looks like in action.
No, you don’t have to be a pilot with Southwest Airlines to live this way. You just need to look up. To pay attention. To care about something bigger than yourself.
In the words of my new friend, “We have to at least try. Let’s get after it.”
Because when we make someone else’s challenge our own, we remind them—and everyone else that’s watching—that people are still good, that light pushes back the darkness, and that the best is yet to come.
This week my friends, choose to live with your soul on fire. Choose to live like Chad.
Today is your day. Live Inspired.
