To Be Considered…Are We There Yet?
When I was little and our family traveled, we were about a half hour into a 10 hour trip, when my two sisters and I would start asking the age-old question all parents get on a road trip…”are we there yet”? Sure enough, I’ve been paid back for that “slight” irritation I caused my parents, when, on road trips Olive and I and our four little cherubs took, the precious darlings would start in quite early…”are we there yet”? It would seem that as we age, we would outgrow this tendency, however, I find myself asking God on numerous occasions…”are we there yet”? Actually, more like, “am I there yet”?
It really is quite silly, when you think about it, to ask that question about our faith walk because we all know in our heads that we will never “arrive” to complete maturity in this life. Somehow, though, from time to time I still insist on pondering in my heart how far I’ve come, and not in a good way, I’m sorry to say. Instead of being grateful for all the Lord has done in me, I will stink up the place with pride. That’s not a good thing! Fortunately I have godly men around me who are capable (and quite willing) to remind me of my mortality when the need arises. Ouch! It hurts, but I am so grateful that these guys love me enough to call me on not only my pride but on any number of character flaws they my observe in my life. It really is true, “faithful are the wounds of a friend…” (Proverbs 27:6)
So, even though I don’t often enjoy this kind of confrontation, (truth be told I never enjoy it) I need to be “sharpened” desperately, and I am thankful for it. “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). The truth is, I cannot grow as a godly man without it…and neither can you. By the way, do you have men like this in your life?