Contemplating

OK, so I am driving to work the other day and the thing I dread most as I pulled out of my subdivision happened ... I got caught waiting for the high school bus to pull in its stop sign and release me from the endless moment of time-loss. Now I know that it is for the safety of the "kids," but these are high school "kids" ... most of them are bigger than me! Anyway, the problem is that they all seem to move so slow. Watching them, I am just about positive that they are actually moving in slow motion. But I am a rule-follower, so I (when I leave late and get caught) simply wait and wait and wait. With that said, let me tell you a little more about the other morning.

The normal mass of "kids" had slow-mo'ed their way to the bus, the stop sign had resended it's order to yield, and the bus had started to mosey on its way ... when out of the corner of my eye I saw a lone "kid" walking ever so slowly towards the now empty location of the bus. When he arrived at the aforementioned site, the bus was about half a block down the street. Now I know that you are thinking he immediately started chasing after the bus with his arms a waving, but you are mistaken. He did raise his hands and did wave them around in a half-hearted way, and then he started to walk down the street in the direction that the bus was still driving. The bus driver did see him, and pulled the bus over extending once again the stop sign capable of bringing traffic to a stand still. Let me interject here that I could have at this point turned right and continued on my way, but I was so intrigued by the building situation that I remained stopped. So now, I am sure you are saying that he must have at that moment decided to run to the bus, which now had its door wide open as an invitation ... beckoning him to come and board, but you are once again mistaken. The boy simply walked at a snail's pace towards the bus that was waiting just for him! Let me just say that I would not make a good bus driver because I would have counted to 10 and then left the young man to think about the benefits of running! Dumbfounded, I decided that I could spend no more time watching, and so I made my turn and left without finding out if the boy ever made it to the bus.

This experience has stayed with me now for many days, and the Lord has been using it to paint a picture for me. You see in this metaphor the bus is God. God pulled over and waiting for us. Waiting for us to get on board. We have all had times that we waved down God, just as the boy did the bus, and have had God signal us and open doors for us ... inviting us to be a part of His will ... And, I would venture to guess that there have been times that all of us have walked, instead of running, towards Him. Thank goodness that he is more like that patient bus driver than like me! I have spent the last few days looking for ways that I am walking, when I should be running and am humbled to say that I too suffer with slow-motionitis.

So, what is it that God is waiting for you for?

To renew your heart towards Him? To forgive someone? To heal your marriage? To turn away from a sin that has consumed you? To spend time with Him? To tell him you deepest fears and surrender them? What is it?

If there is something my friend, run for Him ... run to Him ... and get on the bus.

See you there ...

Lisa