The Kids in the Back Seat

I have been a parent for over ten years now.  I've been a parent of four children for five years.  Our road trips as a family have evolved from trips to the grocery store that created melt downs, to hours of quiet time and connection with each other while we are traveling.  My children have learned that I have special buttons they don't want to push while we are together in the small space of our mini-van:  wrestling, singing at the top of their lungs, or pestering one another.  Thanks to the GPS, they no longer ask, "Are we there yet?" or "How much longer?"  They can see where we are and where we are going.  It is the clear vision that gives them peace.


 It took us over an hour to find a trail head on a recent excursion. The GPS was wrong (or user error), tensions were high, and we couldn't find it.  No one said a word.  I was so grateful.  They've learned from experience.  They know that silence is golden (and duct tape is silver.)


Sometimes, in ministry and in life, I find myself screaming to God, "Bumpy Road! Bumpy Road!" Or, "How much longer?  I just can't sit here any more."  Having a clear vision brings peace, but sometimes I get lost, I've messed up, I'm frustrated, tired and I just want to get there.  You'd think that I would be as wise as my children and just "be still."   The more I try to find "it" myself, the more lost I become and I'm afraid that I push God's buttons more often than not in the process.

Our children have learned through experience to trust us.  Do I trust God?  My experience says that I should.  Do I trust him with our fundraising challenges?  Will I trust him when flights are delayed, room reservations are for less occupants than team members, lesson plans are scratched, equipment fails, luggage is lost, and tensions are high?  What kind of kid will I be in the back seat?  Will I have a complete melt-down?  Or will I choose to trust God and be still?


" . . . unless you become like little children, . . ." Mt. 18:3