[Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure here.]
Note: This post is part of the Two Weeks of Waiting Devotional. To return to the table of contents for the devotional, click here. To read this as a downloadable ebook, subscribe below.
Several Christmases ago I got my husband– an extreme University of Michigan fan– a pair of tickets to a U of M basketball game. Later that winter we made the trek up to Ann Arbor, and as we got closer, my husband asked me to plug in the arena in Google Maps.
It didn’t take long for Derek, my husband, to question my directions a little bit as we waited in typical Ann Arbor traffic. “This is a weird way to go, but I guess I haven’t been here in a while,” he commented questioningly. “Well, this is the way Google Maps says!” I responded brightly.
Eventually he started to get a little annoyed and agitated as we continued driving and waiting in more traffic (what is it with guys and the inability to wait in traffic anyway?). It was almost game time at that point, and we still hadn’t arrived. In fact, it seemed like we were actually moving away from downtown instead of towards it, which seemed odd. But again, as I told my husband, this is the way Google Maps is telling me to go!
Finally, about five minutes after game time, when Google Maps said that we arrived at our destination, I pointed to the sign and said, “Here it i—,” as Derek interrupted me: “Chrysler Arena. With a y? Really? It’s Crisler Arena. C-R-I-S-L-E-R.”
Oops. Who knew there were two different arenas in Ann Arbor that are pronounced the same but have two different spellings?
We had gotten so caught up in waiting that we (okay, I) forgot to double-check our destination.
Have you gotten caught up in your waiting? I know I have. In the last couple of years while dealing with infertility, I’ve researched the best tips for trying to conceive (and then tried them all), I’ve read books, I’ve scheduled appointments with specialists, I’ve had two-thousand dollar tests run. Although there is nothing inherently wrong with doing any of these things, in my case, I became obsessed. And in my obsession it seems that I was moving farther away from God instead of towards Him.
I had forgotten to double-check my destination. Do I want to end up pregnant (no matter the cost– literally and figuratively), or do I want to end up fulfilling God’s plan for my life, whether that includes pregnancy or not?
God tells us,
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Colossians 3:2, NIV
Pregnancy is not my true destination, and neither is whatever you are waiting for. If you are thinking about your wait so much to the point that you are obsessing over earthly things and have forgotten the things above, you may need to double-check your destination.
Further study + reflection
It’s not wrong to pray + wait for the blessings you desire from God. But it’s easy to get caught up in the waiting. Before long you’ve forgotten what’s really important. Double-check your destination. What is your number one focus, the number one goal you have for your life? What matters above all else, more than any of your wishes and desires? Look up Acts 20:24. If your goal is anything less than what you find there, you may need to re-think your destination.
Note: This post is part of the Two Weeks of Waiting Devotional. To return to the table of contents for the devotional, click here. To read this as a downloadable ebook, subscribe below.
Looking for more encouragement during your difficult season of waiting? Join the Contentment + Chaos community to get my FREE Two Weeks of Waiting Devotional!
