He lived "way out in the sticks." Maybe it wasn't exactly the end of the earth,
but you could see it from there. Then he won an all-expenses-paid trip to New
York by being the designated caller in a radio contest.
So he took his first ride on a jet. He landed at LaGuardia only to have a
limousine waiting for him. He was still wide-eyed as it pulled up to the
entrance of a posh hotel and people rushed to open doors, carry luggage, and
otherwise tend to his needs. A bellhop said he would show him to his room.
That room was his first disappointment. It was nice, but it was smaller than he
had envisioned for a penthouse. And it seemed he was going to have to share it,
for two people were already there when he walked into it.
Sensing something wrong, the bellhop asked, "Is there a problem, sir?"
"I don't mean to gripe," he said. "I was just expecting a bigger room."
"Oh, sir," he replied, "your luxury suite is twenty-nine stories up. This is
only the elevator that takes you there."
What are you facing today? Cancer? Bankruptcy? Bad job? No job? Frustration?
Anger? Alcoholism? Unhappy customers? No customers? Being single? Being married?
Being a parent? Being a child?
Don't think for a moment that today's situation has to be the story of your
life, the sum of your existence. The good, the bad, and the indifferent of today
are mile-markers on your longer journey to eternity. The terrain over which you
are traveling ought not be confused with its outcome.
"You won't see us drooping our heads or dragging our feet!" Wrote Paul. "Cramped
conditions here don't get us down. They only remind us of the spacious living
conditions ahead. It's what we trust in but don't yet see that keeps us going"
(2 Cor. 5:6-7, The Message).
If a lack of patience is a serious problem with you today, perhaps it's because
you have confused your pilgrimage with your destiny, the elevator with the
penthouse. Hold on. Stay the course. You're not there yet.
Rubel Shelly The FAX of Life
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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