I have been thinking about that driving today as I have been thinking about how to prepare for Heaven…
My family and I recently went on a driving holiday.
One of the things that my husband most likes to do is to go for long long drives in the car. He would like nothing better than to drive for days at a time, taking in the scenery and moving along highways across great slabs of the country at a time.
When I was a little girl, I absolutely hated going on long drives with my family. Perhaps it was because the cars were not so comfortable in those days? Perhaps it was because the entertainment available to us was usually a simple book to read, which invariably made me feel car sick? Or perhaps it was just a case of being a little spoiled and ungrateful for the opportunities that my parents provided to me? Whatever the reason, I hated long drives.
When I met my husband, our dates started to revolve (quite quickly) around drives. And so, over a period of time – as most people in relationships do – my tastes began to change, and I began to like and even look forward to long drives in the car with my new family…
I have been thinking about that today, because there is a lot of planning involved in driving.
Firstly, the route needs to be arranged in advance. There is no point in planning a drive and not knowing where you are going or where the stops along the way should be. Then, it is important to be physically and mentally prepared for the drive. Entertainment should be brought along with you. This includes things like books, or screens to watch along the way. Children might like a pillow in the car to rest their heads on for when they fall asleep, and adults need to right sort of shoes to be comfortable sitting in one position for long periods of time. And then there is the quiet of the open road. If you plan the trip correctly, the children fall asleep in the car and the parents can have a moment for a conversation uninterrupted by phone calls and emails and all the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
And I have been thinking about that today. Because it seems to me that there are not a lot of differences between long driving and preparing for Heaven. In both cases people need to be prepared and need to have the taste and the tendency to enjoy the journey. The road to Heaven is far more difficult to walk when someone is actively fighting against it – just as a long drive is far more stressful when the children in the car want it to be over with and have no patience for it anymore. And so, just as a long drive requires careful preparation so that the journey can be completed in a logical manner and with the greatest efficiency, so too does the journey to Heaven require intentional preparation to be worthy of salvation.
And I have been thinking about that driving today as I have been thinking about how to prepare for Heaven…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.