Post Card #7 - Are We There Yet?

We have all heard this question asked on road trips - either by your children, recently, or by yourself when you were the impatient child in the back seat. In either case it makes the journey quite stressful.

Last week I posted about unwelcome hitchhikers, namely sin, that tries to hijack our journey. This week it's the critic within that makes our journey miserable with questions like these, "Are you still behind? Have you not caught up yet? When will you ever find time to do all this reading?" What are we to do in such times? It's not like we can kick ourselves out of the car so we can travel in peace!

The answer is as simple as choosing to whom we'll listen. If you're behind - it's okay - this isn't a race. If you're lacking the time you need, then pray and ask God to multiply what time you do have. It's prayers like these that give us the grace we need to keep pressing forward, even if it's only an inch at a time. After all the journey is about getting to know Him, and the critic within would rather do anything but know God more.

Next time you hear the question, "Are we there yet?" You can say with confidence, "No, but I'll get there soon enough! Now, sit back and enjoy the ride!"

P.S. John Owen's book, Apostasy, is available at Metro's bookstore for $6. We'll start reading it next week with the "further study". Make sure you get your copy on Sunday, or order it online.

Postcard From The Road

Good Evening Travelers,

Tom and I love to listen to oldies music when we take road trips. It adds nostalgia and fun to a long day on the road.

As I was reading in the book, "Worldliness" this morning, I was challenged by which radio station I'm listening to as I travel. I may think that music doesn't have a negative effect on me because I don't immediately take a dive spiritually, but I miss the truth that music does indeed influence me. It can cause my conscience to soften, my heart to harden and my affections to grow cold. It's because that we don't see an immediate change that we let down our guard and think it's okay. But drifting however slow is still drifting.

In the same way we can make excuses why we don't read daily in God's Word because we don't see any immediate benefits from it. We may think this daily discipline doesn't really accomplish much because we don't see any obvious changes. But how wrong we are. God has promised us that His Word NEVER returns void, but it accomplishes it's purposes in us. What a glorious truth! Our feelings don't matter, our perceptions don't matter, and whether or not we sense a profound change in our lives doesn't matter. God is at work in us as we travel this road.

So, turn your radio to a great worship channel and let's enjoy the scenery as we continue down Route 66 - because it all matters!

Enjoying the Journey!