Will I Ever Get There?

Philippians 4:6-7

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Have you ever found yourself waiting for your life to begin? Waiting until you could drive, waiting to go to college, waiting to graduate from college, waiting to get a job, waiting to find another job, waiting to get married, waiting to find an apartment, waiting to buy a house so you can get out of your apartment, waiting to have a baby, waiting for your baby to gain independence, waiting for your teen to move out, waiting....waiting...waiting.

Now, some of these I have never experienced, but the list could go on forever. The point is that I get caught in this trap ALL THE TIME!!! The trap of waiting for life to begin (AKA: Waiting for the Part of Life I am Ready for to Begin Now). Well, I've been caught in the waiting trap yet again. The trap is actually not a trap at all...it's simply a negative attitude against life. A hole that I dig, and then I proceed to jump into it. Then I wallow in self pity until someone or something comes along to point out that I'm being stupid. Yes, wallowing in self-pity has been a favorite past-time of mine since I had the ability to throw a fit!

So, today I was wallowing...again...and this verse just popped into my head. I think God smacked me over the head with it. I was sitting here dwelling on parts of my life that have not gotten here yet, and it hit me. If I can't be thankful for the life I have now (a life of worry-free luxury for the most part), I'm never going to get there! I'm never going to get to a place where I can say...here I am...this is where I've always wanted to be!!!

I tried to think of all the things that were actually bad in my life, so that I could take all my requests and anxieties to God in prayer (the wallowing voice inside me could not help thinking that this list was going to be a long one). I tell you, I could not think of a single bad thing! The ONLY thing bad in my life (at the moment) was the fact that I cannot fast-forward time. I realized that I was sitting around waisting my wonderful life by inflicting misery on myself because my life is not going fast enough....yes, I'm definitely crazy! Well, I guess I have my request for God...I need to request peace, patience, and contentment with my wonderful life.

So then I decided to try to apply the "with thanksgiving" part of verse 6... I started thinking of things I'm thankful for, and my A.D.D. mind strayed to another topic before I ever got to the end of that list! It went on FOREVER because I am so blessed.

The moral of the story is that we all (especially me) need to focus on the blessings that God pours out on us daily instead of looking forward to that which we can't have right now. Only then will we receive the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension. Only then will we be able to guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. Only then will life truly begin!