Just Traveling Through

Finally! In two weeks we are traveling south!

Croatia and Italy are in our sights, reservations are complete, and sightseeing plans are in progress. But which sights to visit with such attractions? Which pastries to enjoy in Padua? Over-choice for sure in both sights and sensations!

Soon enough though, the impending facts will kick in, like surviving the long hours on the road, the late July heat, and all the unknowns of unknown territory. And how to communicate with the notorious 'non-English speaking' Italians? Yikes!

To this, my husband and I will be forced to deal with any surprises from our less-than-steadfast senior bodies and their whims...

We take it on faith that the accommodations are there, prepared, and paid for as advertised. We have to take it on faith that our health will bear up under sightseeing crowds and the 30C-plus degree 'centro città' of Venice and Padua. 

We walk by faith all the time. Temporary travels, be they swimming in Croatian waters or washing up at our kitchen sink in Gliwice, Poland, all are ‘just passing through!’

When you think about it, in a world full of folks who praise self and sin, all communication in a believer's ear is like a foreign language. Then there is the suffering going on around us, the lived-out death wishes of many, all the lack of interest in the loving God of our lives, even among those who know His name but do not spend time getting to know him more deeply.  Ever try to explain why you attend church to someone who has never been? Or what you have gained by prayer?

We are just traveling through even at home. Each day is like a take-out meal served up with a side of faith. Every day can bring trials and troubles. That faith helps a believer keep it together in the midst of what life throws at us.

Just today, while I was running errands, I saw an older gentleman hit by a taxi. He was OK, only hit by the side view mirror, but that could have been a loved one or even me caught up in answering a Whatsapp instead of watching the road.  Life has no guarantees, it never promises any. 

Any joys we hold in our hands are fleeting at best -- love, friendship, material things, position --they all grow then die over time. Some sooner, some later. I count myself blessed to have 'later' in all that counts! 🙌

Any pain we endure spurs us more than ever toward that spectacular, eternal home. 

What is prepared there for us is one thing, and it sounds amazing.  But the who waiting for us there is even greater.  Our Lord, our Savior, the lover of our souls, and time to enjoy Him.  All of forever!

So, ready to know the reality of what Billy Graham saw and passed on?

"For we live by faith, not by sight."     2 Corinthians 5:7

+Image of the painting by Joy for sale at madeseen.com. You can see her work at this site.