“We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” (Hebrews 6:12)
As I pulled up the article about my favorite major league baseball team, I was intrigued by its title. The team has not contended in the post-season for many years, and the fan base is starting to get restless. Those in management must soon provide answers to some important questions. They include: Do we have any players currently on the team whom we can build around? Who do we have in our minor league system that might be able to give some spark and provide some energy to a team who is inconsistent? Or is it time to just sell off and buy some pieces who will give this franchise the impetus it so badly needs? The title of the article was “Are We There Yet?” I laughed, thinking to myself that these are the same whining words that will soon resonate from the back seat of many a mini-van loaded with families about to embark on vacation destinations all across America.
In 2016, Chrysler provided a positive application on its Pacifica’s rear seat Uconnect theater system. The name of the app? You guess it . . . ‘Are We There Yet.’ Similar to data one is able to retrieve from a GPS, restless children are now furnished with the information they need without resorting to the traditional annoyance of nagging. According to marketing reports, “the app displays the distance remaining to the destination and estimated arrival times, all presented in fun, colorful, child-friendly graphics.” Now if only a similar app could be invented for the new graduate who is ready to change the world in their first job. Or for the rest of us, for that matter, when our patience is dwindling thin as we wait for an answer to a medical test, guidance from our company about possible downsizing, or whether or not the loan will come through to finance that new home we have been planning for years. While generations of children have echoed the accustomed refrain “are we there yet” – they grow into adults who continue the all-too-familiar question with varying degrees of impatience and uncertainty.
How many times Moses must have heard that question from the Israelites! Before rescuing them from slavery and leading them out of Egypt, Moses provided information that the Lord would lead them to “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8). However, they first spent forty years wandering in the wilderness, because they became convinced they could not banish the current inhabitants of the land (even though God told them they could). Failing to trust and obey, their lack of patience and belief in God’s word brought forth His wrath. This resulted in their curse as nomads and eventual demise as an unbelieving generation who never stepped foot into the Promised Land. Only a few faithful survived. Centuries later, Paul wrote: “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled. And who was it who rebelled against God, even though they heard his voice? Wasn’t it the people Moses led out of Egypt? And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it the people who sinned, whose corpses lay in the wilderness? And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn’t it the people who disobeyed him? So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest” (Hebrews 3:15-19).
This truth is no different for us today. He will never lead us where His grace cannot provide for us or His power cannot protect us. God wants us to come out of the wilderness and find rest. Therefore, be patient remembering, “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent” (2 Peter 3:9). Put away the regrets of yesterday and learn to live more in the moment, looking forward to what lies ahead. In life, it will sometimes seem as if we are wandering in circles. We want to ask God, “Are we there yet? How much longer?” At such times, it helps to remember that the journey, not just the destination, is important to God. He uses it to humble us, test us, and show us what is in our hearts.
REFLECTION: Is there something in your life that you know God is asking you to do but upon which you have not acted due to fear or lack of faith? What action steps might you put in place to get from here to there? How might you explain to another person of faith that what sometimes appears to be a non-answer is God’s was of taking us on a journey where He draws us to a place of total dependence on Him?
A NEW LOOKUP DEVOTION IS UPLOADED EACH WEEK. THE NEXT WEEKLY POSTING WILL BE ON SAT., JUNE 3, 2017. COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED.