Are We There Yet?

“Are we there yet?”

We’re all familiar with the question that often comes from long road trips with young kids. The question that prompts the desire to find a reason to give a child benadryl- just kidding… maybe.

I can remember many times I have been in the car and grown impatient with the travels ahead of me. We’ve all been there, right?

A few months ago I had to make a journey from Chattanooga, down to Birmingham, then back up to Ardmore, AL. I would be lying if I said the thought of the short road trip made me ecstatic- but nonetheless, it was necessary.

So, I went. I picked my mom up, then I drove us back up to Northern Alabama to attend a family member’s funeral. The next day, we began to journey back to Birmingham to drop my mom off.

I was not looking forward to it. I was tired, ready to stay in my new home for a consistent amount of time, and I simply didn’t feel like I had time. I did NOT want to do it.

But isn’t it funny that the trips we don't want to take are always the ones that prompt the most blessing? See, the drive I was dreading was a time that I will always cherish with my mom.

Those two-ish hours in the car were spent chatting about both of our lives. It ended up being a time of growing closer for the two of us. It was a time I almost rushed through and missed.

Even though it wasn’t a significant moment that gave me revelations about life, it was a moment in which I had the choice to choose joy in something as simple as a car ride.

Growing up, I always heard that patience was a virtue.

As you may can see, patience is not something I have mastered, so even if there was the hope of knowing that patience brings something great- I’m terrible at it.

I have always tried to rush ahead to the next thing instead of living in the gift that has been brought in the present.

But, if we live our lives rushing towards the next thing, we won’t even have the capacity to enjoy that- as then we will start looking forward once again. Like when we are in high school, we are anxious for college, and in college we grow ready for the “real world”. The process never ends. It's a domino effect.

The things we look forward to inevitably become the things we never truly get to experience. It’s just something else we rush though.

When we rush, we tend to skim over the significant parts of life and then completely miss the mundane things that are still worth being celebrated. Like the moment with my mom in the car. I almost missed a simple but enjoyable time with someone I love because I was rushing on to the next thing on my list.

How often do we forget about the joy in waiting?

Right now, I am in many different seasons of waiting. I think we all are, it just looks different for many of us.

In saying this, I am also consistently fighting (and many times losing) the battle of staying in touch with the present moment.

What is true for me right is that I know that, at some point, the Lord has something different in life that He wants me to pursue. It’s both exciting and daunting. Even though it's something I find a bit scary, I want to rush into it to see if it's worth the fright.

But that’s not how it works.

The Lord brings us to certain seasons of life for a reason. In this way, we can be like flowers or plants. We can choose to either nurture this time of life in order to bloom in the right timing, or we can rush the process, and in doing so flood ourselves with anticipation so much that it kills us or stunts growth.

Don't flood yourself. Instead, do this:

“Rejoice in hope, patient in tribulation, constant in prayer”

Romans 12:12

God calls us to hang on to hope, to wait on Him in times of affliction, and to be in prayer at all times.

What if our response to impatience was that of surrender to God’s will through hope, patience, and prayer?

What if we responded in trusting that God will bring everything to fruition for our lives in His perfect timing?

If we truly live our lives as a living sacrifice to the Lord, we can sit back and remain in the season He has for us now. He knows whats best, so why try and rush the current blessing of time He has given us?

Now, don’t take this as me being patient. The Lord has definitely convicted me through this word- I am indeed, the pot calling the kettle black.

I am so ready to journey into a season of serving Christ with a significant other through marriage. I inwardly squeal at the idea of growing a family. I am ready to jump into a season of vocational service that the Lord hasn’t brought me to yet.

But the Lord reminds me in Ephesians 3:20 that His mind and plan goes way beyond my own creativity and imagination of what is yet to come. His mind is the one that knows best, so why try and push my own agenda?

If you’re ready to exit a time of pain and sorrow- wait.

If you’re ready to step out of a season of singleness- wait.

If you’re ready to venture out into a new job- wait.

If you’re ready to skip ahead, whatever that may mean- wait.

Hold onto your hope. Be patient. And pray and seek the Lord during this time of waiting.

Wait for the Lord’s timing.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”

1 Peter 5:6-7

The Lord cares for you- so deeply. Today we have the choice to put ourselves aside; our pride, our agenda, our fleshly desires. We have the opportunity to stand in our calling of waiting on God, and in the meantime, accomplishing that in which He has called us to do in the present time.

In simpler terms, grow where you are planted. He will bloom you into He wants you to be with His nurturing hand. Then, just like in all seasons, you then start over as it changes, and you start a process of growth once again.

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it."

1 Timothy 6:6-7

Learn to be content. Life itself is a gift anyways, right? You will achieve so much more in the kingdom of Christ is you learn to be content.

Don't grow impatient of the journey, but rejoice in the small and big pit stops along the way.

Are we there yet? No; so enjoy the ride.

Songs for reflection, prayer, and singing:

"Wait on You" - Maverick City Music

"The Waiting" - Jamie Grace

"Your Will Be Done" - CityAlight

"While We Wait" - Amanda Cook

"Firm Foundation" - Cody Carnes