The Journey
I heard a sermon one time about a missionary in a far off land who wanted to bring a gift to a friend he was visiting. He walked miles and miles to the shore of the sea and found a beautiful shell to take as a gift. As he arrived at the friends’ house and presented his gift, his friend admired the exquisite shell. However, after hearing the missionary’s story, the friend came to understand that the real gift was the long journey his friend endured in order to collect the seashell.Several Christmases ago, Mike and I were in the mall (fyi: I hate malls) and I happened upon a jacket I fell in love with. I took it off the rack and admired it and looked at the price and hung it back up. I commented on how nice I thought it was.Lo, and behold, that Christmas, my most treasured gift was from Mike. It was that jacket. After I unwrapped it, he went on to explain how he went back to the mall but couldn’t remember the store where we had seen the jacket. He literally walked for hours up and down the corridors and through countless stores looking for that jacket. And I realized that much more than the beautiful jacket, the real gift was the journey.Eternal life is a promise we as believers hold on to. The glory of Heaven, reunion with loved ones, mansions and pearly gates, and most importantly, the presence of T
he Trinity. These are what we long for.However, let’s not forget the significance of the journey.In his book, Abba’s Child, Brennan Manning writes, “We realize that we are not alone on the Yellow Brick Road. Traffic is heavy. Fellow travelers are everywhere. It isn’t just me and Jesus anymore. The road is dotted with the moral and immoral, the beautiful and the grungy, friends and enemies, people who help us and those who hinder us, bank guards and bank robbers- human beings of bewildering complexity and diversity. And the Rabbi’s word, of course, is to love each person along the way. What we do to them, we do to Him.”Yes, I’m looking forward to heaven, but I believe the gift of the journey shouldn’t be missed. Each day is a gift. I want to savor and use each one well.
