Road Trip
After a recent 1500 mile road trip with my family I was never happier to return to our home and spread out! Traveling in our mini-van for 25+ hours taught me a few valuable lessons.
First, the excitement of the trip was in full force when we pulled out of the driveway to leave for our trip. We were piled up with DVD’s, snacks, drinks, coloring books and other time-occupying paraphernalia. We knew the trip would take a long time, but no one really seemed to care….yet.
After about four hours the “are-we-there-yets” started. I think we heard that phrase close to one hundred times! I got to thinking about the spiritual applications of this question. How many times do I start my day excited about the things it holds? A day with my kids, lunch with a friend, my job, a night out with my husband—all excite me when its 8:00 AM. But many days by the time it is 5:00 PM, I am asking “Are we there yet?” in a whining voice, much like the kids on our road trip.
Secondly, I am amazed at the amount of trash that collects in one mini-van during a road trip. My word! I found trash in the car that I didn’t even know how it got there. I realized too late that a small trashcan might have been an added bonus for this trip!
Spiritually speaking, trash collects in my life that I need to clean out on a daily basis. Bad attitudes, gossip, lies, negativity and an unthankful spirit are just a few pieces of trash that need a good clearing out of our hearts regularly. Waiting even a few days can be detrimental to the heart’s cleanliness.
I also learned that you can never have enough chocolate or too many pairs of earplugs…but we will save that for another day! Meanwhile, I’ve got some cleaning out to do before my next road trip.
PRAYER: Father, clean out the trash that has collected in my life and help me to not get weary on this spiritual road trip. While my anticipation is great for the eternal life You’ve promised, to guide my footsteps every step of the way here on earth.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me,” Psalm 51:10 KJV.
Today’s devotion is by Gina Stinson, wife to Bruce, mom to Savannah and Tucker, co- founder of The Mission in Gunter, TX, and publicist assistant for Kathy Carlton Willis Communications.
