In our years as youth ministers one of the most memorable annoyances
{for us as well as the students I'm sure} were trips. LONG trips.
It wasn't really the trip itself that was annoying it was being cramped in a vehicle for the long ride. The inevitable questions were always, "Are we there yet?" and "What are we doing next?" Those were the skin crawling questions for the adults. Why can't they just get in the van, sit back, and enjoy the ride?
These are the same questions that I have trouble hearing from my kids. I just think, does it matter? I get so frustrated; don't you trust me? I have their best interest in mind because I love them. Ugg
The answer for the students in our ministry, I've learned recently, was just as irritating, "Nun-ya". Well maybe not that exact phrase, or at least not all the time. Some form of "We'll tell ya what you need to know when you need to know it", "Be patient", and "Be Flexible".
Yep, same phrases I use with my children. I bet my kids hear the phrase, "Be Patient." 800 times a day. The other one is "Listen 1st time!" We demand obedience. Delayed obedience is still disobedience. We use these so often that my kids use the phrases. Our definition for the vocabulary-love'n-4-year-old is, obey means listen 1st time and patience means wait. Wait without questions.Wait with out grumbles or whining. Wait without dancing around like a crazy. Wait quietly. Wait peacefully.
Sounds all good and well, right!?!
Yeah, until I'm in the backseat asking, "Are the THERE yet!?!?!?!?!"
I ask all those same things of God on this crazy fun journey. We're truck'n along and he tells me the ultimate destination but I can't handle the bathroom breaks, gas-ups, and stops for meals. I'm just ready to be there. I wanna know when, why, and what time each stop is gonna be along the way. I squirm and whine in a giant tantrum all in the name of praying. but what to do next or right now, or how I should do ____."
I don't know why it's taken me so long to figure this one out but in Genesis 22, God tells Abraham to do something. Now, let ignore the fact that it was nuts-o. God tells him something kind of generic: Go sacrifice you son. on a mountain (I'll tell ya which one later). What the crap? No, that's not what Ab says. No, he gets up early the very next day to go do it. He doesn't sit around going, Well, I think God ask me to do this but I'm not sure if it was really God or the chili I ate for lunch. I think I'll pray about it a little longer. If it's what He wants me to do, it will all fall into place. He'll tell me where, how, why, etc.
That's what we do! That's what I do.
Abraham packs up is junk, servant dudes, and his only son. The one that's supposed to fulfill the promise God gave him years ago of being the father of many nations. Then they hike it 3 days. Some where along the way God tells Ab which mountain but that's about as specific as it gets. God didn't explain to him why He would ask this of him.
We I would be kicking and screaming if I'd even gotten myself on the road to obedience.
Abraham lives out his faith in front of his son {as he'd obviously done for 30+ years} as they trudged up the mountain to follow through with what God had asked. He wasn't crying out to God the entire way up, YO! You said I would be a father of many. You gonna bring this joker back after I kill him? Are you gonna give me something else to take his place? How in the world do you expect me to do this???
Abraham "listened 1st time". Abraham waited without questions. He waited with out grumbles or whining. Abraham waited without dancing around like a crazy. He waited quietly. Abraham waited in the peace that God was God. He would come through even if it wasn't how he wanted. Yeah, we can look at it now and peacefully think he of course should obey. God's gonna take care of him. But although Abraham didn't know exactly how God was going to work things out but he still obeyed immediately and without grumbling.
I'm learning to listen 1st time and to wait patiently amidst obeying what God is asking of me Now. If I wait to obey until God gives me the entire story, all the details, or the point of what He's asking of me...I'll never obey. Step by step, just like we ask of our children, I'll obey without questioning God's motive. Learning trust His perfect character and joyfully await the perfect end result.
