Here we are.
40 Days.
In the Bible, 40 is a pretty significant number. Just a few examples . . .
Noah and company floated in the ark for 40 Days and 40 nights.
Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days.
There are 40 days between Easter and Pentacost.
The Children of Israel wandered the desert for 40 years.
Quite honestly, I’ve been thinking about the Children of Israel a lot lately. Because I think I can kind of relate to an extended wandering my way through life. I can kind of relate to being delivered from a slavery of sorts. I can kind of understand what it feels like to not exactly know where I’m going but see a light ahead of me. But mainly I understand what it feels like to complain today.
You see when the Children of Israel were led out of slavery from Egypt, God provided what they needed. He gave them manna to feast on everyday. He led them as a pillar of a cloud and a pillar of fire. And he provided a competent leader in Moses.
And yet, even with all of those affirmations, after a bit of wandering, they began to question God. And even better, they began to miss Egypt. You know, Egypt, where they were slaves.
Sitting on this side of Canaan, we laugh at their malcontent. We mock their ignorance in wanting to return to the very things that kept them captive. We think, “What a lazy bunch of whiners who have no gratitude for what God has provided!”
Are we really any better?
Honestly, today when I found out that the repair shop didn’t feel it was in our or their best interest to completely fix our car because yes it is that bad, I began to do the same thing.
“Seriously, God? You’ve brought us this far for this? 2 vehicles down within less than a week? What was all of the sacrifice worth? We’re so close to being debt free. We’re so close to this goal that we’ve worked for with all of our might for 4 stinking years – the one we knew You called us to chase after. 48 months, 1,460 days worth of self-discipline, self-denial, intentionality, and watching everyone else do the fun stuff. Everyone else was buying cars, buying clothes, going to the movies, taking vacations, and eating at P.F. Changs. We were at home on the couch with the homemade popcorn that we popped on the stove because our microwave died watching the $7.99/month Netflix that is all we can watch on our 2nd hand TV.”
I have to chuckle at the last sentence. Because I honestly do sound like a lazy whiner who has no gratitude. Most of the world lives on less than 2 American dollars a day.
We are still well fed.
We are still in a house.
We are very well entertained.
We have got our health.
We have got each other.
We have not been left nor forsaken.
Our needs are met and the path is clear.
And so we made the decision to apply a quick fix to the car for now and push on through the next 40 days. If the car blows up completely, we’ll deal with it. It’s not worth diving back into debt. It’s not even worth complaining about.
God is faithful and we have no desire to return to Egypt, to be enslaved by debt again – ever.
Promised land, here we come.
www.queenoffree.net
