Are we there yet?

It's kind of a cliche, the nagging question, "Are we there yet?" But so often it is a question that we ask, that I ask. It may not be an audible question that I subject everyone to in hearing range, but it is a question that I subject God to on a fairly regular basis. I may not use the exact words but I use a variety in my complaints (i.e. "How much longer, Lord?", "When can I have it?", "What do I have to do to get to it?", "I am tired of this journey.").

I was thinking about this as Chris and I were driving to Denver for Christmas. It was a lovely drive with breathtaking scenery. I stared out the window for what seemed like hours, taking in the grandeur of my Gods creativity. It was exciting for me to see the changes of landscaping as the miles went by.

When I was a kid and my family would go on road trips to different places in the US, I can remember my dad hollering to my sister and I in the back seat to stop reading or sleeping and look out the window at what we were driving by. As a kid, that totally bugged me. I would begrudgingly divert my attention from whatever I was doing to pass the time with in the back seat and glance out the window to some breath taking panorama of creation and say "That's nice. How much longer till we get there?". Then go back to whatever it was that I was doing, completely neglecting to absorb all the splendor that we were driving by, only waiting for an estimated time of arrival. I remember being so excited about what we would do when we got to our destination and saw the traveling time as a necessary evil.

Now, as an adult, the travel time is my favorite time. I relish in the idea of having uninterrupted time with my favorite person, Chris, even if the traveling is exhausting. I love to travel, not just for the destination, but for the journey to get there.

Today I found myself asking God those stupid questions as I was pulling out my 2011 calendar (I know, a little late:) and adding all of our family members birthdays. Hoping that in the next year I will be able to add the birthday of my child. Hoping that I don't have to go through another year of waiting. Praying that I would make it through if I had to. Asking God "Are we there yet?", "How long until we get there?", "My butt hurts." So often I get overwhelmed with the idea of the length of the journey and don't look out the window to see what it is that I am actually journeying through.

My prayer for this year is that I would look around and see God's goodness, kindness, faithfulness, and love. And not focus on how long it takes to get to a "destination". Even if nothing that I have been praying for happens, by God's grace, I want to enjoy the journey of getting there.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9