This weekend, my family drove across the country to visit our family. It was a long drive--20 hours!--but we have done it many times and look forward to our long family car trips. They give us plenty of time to read, study, listen to sermons, and stare out the window. This year, the ride was relatively uneventful. Last summer, it wasn't, but that's another story=) We pulled in the driveway after 3 a.m., and several very sweet cousins were still awake to help us unload. For the next few weeks, we will be visiting a state that, although very familiar and "homey" from many years of visiting, is still not quite our home.
It's a good reminder of what we began our summer thinking about in 1 Peter: The pilgrims, strangers, and aliens scattered around the world (1 Peter 1:1). We can settle down here and enjoy being with family--some of our best memories were made here--but we won't be at home. We're travelers.
During the drive, my older sister was reading and old edition of Pilgrim's Progress. In the book, she noticed that Bunyan used the verbs "travel" and "travail" interchangeably (don't you love reading olde English!). We were traveling to our grandparents. Pilgrim was travailing to the Celestial City. Traveling means we are going from one place to another on a journey; travailing means we are laboring and toiling. When our traveling is difficult, we travail. When we travail, we travel. Our suffering doesn't leave us in the same place! We travel from one place to another!
2 Corinthians 7:10-11--For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
Godly sorrow, or suffering, is not in vain! Sometimes when our travailing seems in vain and we pray for strength, it still seems like we can't get through...things don't get easier. But, as my pastor says, God's answer to prayer may not be taking the trial away. It may simply be the strength to get through the day so you return to Him the next day and ask for more grace.
As we enter the last 20 days before the local Bible Bee competition, our travailing is getting more intense. It's almost time! Yet our journey is nowhere near over--Bible Bee is only the beginning.
Keep traveling and travailing to the Celestial City, Pilgrim!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Abigail! They were wonderful to read...I liked what you said about "Pilgrim's Progress" and about the two different words. "Pilgrim's Progress" is on my list of one of my favorite books. I like a lot of the books that Bunyan has written. Have you read any others that he has written?
ReplyDeleteAnyways, thanks for sharing...I needed to hear this when I did! Although the path is hard, the end is in sight! Keep pressing on, everyone!
Thank you for this post! Again, this is just what I needed to hear. Travailing isn't easy, but its necessary for growth. As we travel along life's hard paths, may we remember that God uses trials to build us up to be who He wants us to be.
ReplyDeleteBible Bee is definitely getting hard, but God uses that to strengthen us. Thanks again!