May 27th - Enjoy the view!

     If you've ever been on a journey/trip probably the most common question asked by a young child or even an adult for that matter is "How much longer?"  If we are going to a destination we have an idea of the length of the journey.  Sure, situations can change that; a flat tire, an accident, a snow storm but we do know how long in normal conditions we will need to wait until we reach our destination.

Recently we have been using a gps/sat nav a few times as we have gone places.  They are interestingly little machines that often have a mind of their own as we recently discovered whilst driving the wrong way down a one way street in the middle of a big city, but that's another story....  Moving swiftly on, the great thing about these clever little devices is that they tell you how long you will be on that road before moving to the next, how many miles left to travel, as well as approximately how many minutes until you hear the welcome words, "You have reached your destination."  The whole system is down to a science and unless an unexpected circumstance occurs the whole journey is quite prescribed.
The thing is though that life isn't always like that and the length of waiting isn't always known.  Can you imagine getting in a car to go somewhere and not knowing if you will arrive in 10 minutes or 24 hours or even a few weeks?  How do you prepare?  What do you wear?  Do you take your ipod or food for the journey?  It's nearly impossible to plan.
It seems this is the world that Earl and I have found ourselves in.  I've waited for many things over the years, waited for graduation day, for special trips to visit friends, for my wedding day, etc. etc.  All of these waiting periods had quite a bit of definition around them but this, this is so very, very different.  Recently someone came up to me that had been praying for me and shared something with me.  They felt God had told them to share with me that the road was difficult because I didn't know the length of the road that I was travelling on but that it was important that I enjoy the view!

I really love that perspective but how do you enjoy the view on a journey that could be extremely short or extremely long.  The answers are not obvious but I have come to a few conclusions.  First of all, I have had to rest in the fact that there is absolutely nothing I can do to make this process go faster.  We are approved and we wait to be chosen.  That's it, my job is to wait.  Also, I am enjoying the view.  Life is good and even though it will change drastically at some point I trust that God will show me how to cope with those changes.  But for now I am not focusing on what will be but what is.  I am enjoying life with my amazing husband of nearly 16 years, loving our new home that we share with our dear friend Lizzie who is a sister to both of us, leading West Basingstoke Community church that has some of the most caring, generous, and Godly people I know, and just taking each day as a new adventure.  Life here in England is far from boring and I don't want to miss it simply waiting to hear the words, "You have reached your destination."

The link below is 'Never Once' by Matt Redman, it is one that has spoken to us recently