God’s Sufficiency in Long Journeys
With our winter white dwarf hamster in a travel cage at my feet, we pulled out of our Midwest driveway for the final time and began a journey I wanted to fast forward through. Traveling 2,066 miles in four days with two boys ages 8 and 6 in a small car seemed more than ambitious. But it also was the only way to get our single vehicle across the country.
The trek wasn’t easy. Each day the last two hours seemed to drag. The last couple days, the boys’ bickering escalated in the afternoons. When making steep climbs, we had to turn off our AC. But as the miles ticked by, God surprised me with joy.
Most of us have to embark on less desirable journeys at various points in our life—the sleeplessness of the newborn stage, unexpected job loss, the health decline of a loved one, years of educational training. But as we walk through experiences we wished we could bypass, we often discover God’s sufficiency as we wait on Him like a prospector panning for gold.
4 LESSONS ON GOD’S SUFFICIENCY
Here are four lessons on the surprising way God meets us along the arduous pathways we wished we could unsubscribe from.
1) Rest is essential.
With an anticipated minimum of 30 hours of drive time (never mind when our car couldn’t keep the same pace when climbing steep inclines), we were tempted to keep pressing onward if things were going smoothly. But whether we realized it or not, even driving can be tiring. Rather than chasing the sunset, we found our pre-set destinations a useful way to signal the end of a driving day. Then we could enjoy the remaining summer sunshine by splashing in a pool or relaxing inside our hotel room. And this unwinding prepared us for the next day.
As we walk through undesirable seasons, we must pace ourselves and acknowledge the limitations of our physical bodies. We can only apply to so many jobs before fatigue sets in. Even though it’s tempting to spend that short infant naptime to clean, perhaps rest is wiser. Pushing through fatigue rarely results in good long-term benefits. Even the apostle Paul recognized how our weakness allows God’s strength to shine (2 Cor. 12:10). When we rest, we acknowledge our dependency on the Lord.
2) Beauty exists in desolate places.
Despite the expansive, unforgiving desert that Nevada is, hidden in its midst off the side of the highway was a salt flat. Instead of unending brown, the terrain turned white with mountains in the backdrop. This simple color shift was striking. Stumbling across beauty in a dry and thirsty land during a monotonous trek sparked awe in the Lord.
Sometimes God surprises us with beauty in unexpected places. A newborn’s first belly laugh. The scent of lilacs recalls a sweet memory of a loved one. A simple act of kindness. Even as we walk through sun-scorched seasons, God trains our eyes and hearts toward Him, the majestic Creator (Ps. 8:1).
3) Christ grants His sufficiency to do hard things.
As we neared our final destination in the Sierra foothills, our aging car was put to the test as it climbed up and down mountain passes. As we crawled along winding roads, far removed from civilization our focus intensified. This section of our trip was the most tenuous and I tried to focus on the road ahead to avoid becoming car sick. We wondered if our car could keep up with the ascending and descending of such steep grades.
When we pulled over to readjust the bike rack straps, the scent of pine needles drifted through the air. The crisp mountain air recharged our hopes that this hard drive was possible. But we would need to take it slow (and let others with bigger engines zip by) and allow the refreshing high altitude air to filter through our rolled down windows.
After the prophet Daniel was whisked from his homeland to a strange land, he was quickly faced with a decision during a difficult season of his life. Would he eat the king's food? Or stick to what he believed was right by rejecting the king's food? Despite the serious potential consequence of refusing what the king wanted, Daniel does what he believes honors God. It wasn't easy, but it was right. And as the rest of Daniel unfolds, we see God blessing Daniel (and his friends) for making difficult, costly decisions in their devotion to God above worldly pressures, comfort, and even their own lives (See Daniel 1–6). But God supplies the strength they needed to do the next right thing.
As God leads us to do hard things, we may not go at the pace we imagined, the road ahead may feel unrelenting, or it may be costly to do what's right. But as we trust in God, He will sustain us for the path ahead (Ps. 55:22).
4) Enduring is worth it.
The miles dragged on like taking a walk through mud as we stopped yet again for another bathroom break in the same hour. Sometimes it felt like we would never reach our destination—that we would be perpetual wanderers in an unfamiliar place.
Moments when we question whether doing the next right thing is worth it will ebb and flow. But as we continue to take the next step, we make progress—even painfully slow at times—toward whatever is around the corner. As we practice endurance, God builds character in us which results in hope (Rom. 5:3–5). We have hope for our future because God works in us even when life isn’t enjoyable.
When we pulled into the driveway of our new home, we knew the journey was worth it. We no longer had to endure long days of confinement in a moving vehicle. We were free to roam both indoors and outdoors. Our days of perseverance cultivated a deeper appreciation for where we landed.
As my family traveled along the I-80, God’s sufficiency unfolded mile marker by mile marker. I was grateful I didn’t have the ability to bypass the long driving days across the U.S because I would have missed what the Lord was showing me. And as we walk less than desirable seasons, may we not rush past them, but glean the lessons God has for us.