Convenience

I talked to one of my dearest friends last night who lives in a hard place on the opposite side of the globe. His family certainly pays the price for bringing the good news to people who need it.  Since we graduated college in 2001, he has either been over there or finishing school to get him back there. In a couple of months he gets to come home for 6 months.  They left a little over 3 years ago with a 6 month old and are going to return with a 3 year old, 18 month old, and an 8 month old.  As you can imagine, they are excited about some rest in the good old USofA.

But as we were talking, I realized that being foreigners is their life. They have spent most of their marriage out of the country and two of their kids have never stepped on US soil.   When I asked him about this, he said that he was probably more comfortable overseas than in America.  But then he followed that with, “But I am not going to lie, we are excited about the convenience in the states.”  They will be able to drive to a grocery store to get all they need and go home.  No more walking miles and taking taxis to 4 markets before you can come home with all your groceries.

Convenience is a double-edge sword. For my friends while they are home, it will be a blessing.  For those of us who live with it everyday, it can be a curse.  Everything from a doctors visit to the supermarket is so convenientt that we rarely are in the position where we must trust the Lord.