ARE WE AT THE FIELDS YET? 5/4/09

ARE WE THERE YET?
When Jim’s sister Jo turned 90 some years ago, his family was celebrating her birthday at their annual summer gathering. Jim, Jennifer and I usually attended the summer party but Danny didn’t. However for this occasion he came along with us and he brought Jordan with him. Jordan was 5! A very creative and precocious child! He could entertain himself for hours. I remember Danny telling us that while living in Boise when Jordan was 3 or 4 and Faye wasn’t working, Jordan said to her; "Come on Mom, let’s go to the mall, you’ll have a good time, you’ll see"! On this particular trip I gave Jordan a map. We planned to spend the night in Bakersfield’s Calif., which was approximately twelve hours from our home. A long drive for a 5 year old!

I placed a circle around Bakersfield and Jordan and I marked each major city or town we came to that was on the map. He could see that we were getting closer but he would still ask; "Are we at the fields yet"? I would tell him no and show him on the map where we were. He would yell out to Grandpa where we were and tell him we weren’t to the fields yet. Off and on he would become restless and of course Grandpa stopped often. Sometimes for us but mostly for himself. For the most part Jordan was content as long as he could keep track of where he was on the map. He would nap and wake up with; "Are we at the fields yet"? I am sure this trip was far more memorable to me than it was to him. When we came to the sign that said Bakersfield and I told him we were at the fields, he was excited and told his Grandpa we were at the fields. He then became somewhat puzzled when we pulled into the motel and there were no fields. His first question was; "Where are the fields?"

The next leg of the trip, Jordan wasn’t interested in the map. He just wanted to be there! He was done with traveling and so was I. But then road trips are not my cup of tea when they last longer than 6 hours. However, being with Jim and my children can help generate an atmosphere of complete enjoyment that can carry me on for a long time. Not so with Jordan!
We still had about 3 or 4 hours to go but at least we were refreshed after an evening in the pool, hot tub and a good night sleep. For me, I just needed the good night sleep!

It is amazing when you watch a new born baby develop. First they scoot, turn over, roll, crawl. Then after learning to stand they begin to stumble and before you know it they are walking. They’re Into everything! They learn to say NO! For most, it is up hill all the way. No turning back! Right from the start, they want to do it their way. "Even a child makes himself known by his acts"; Proverbs 20:11a. "Folly is bound up in the heart of a child "; Proverbs 22:15a. 15b says; "but the rod of discipline drives it far from him". Most familiar is Ephesians 6:2-4 where it says that children are to obey their parents in the Lord, and parents are to bring them up in discipline and instruction.

"Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God" and everyone one who loves the parent loves the child"; 1 John 5:1. John is likening loving the parent, which causes love for the child. This helps us to understand that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments.

Children first feed on milk before they get the meat. "Every one who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness"; Hebrews 5:13. He is a child! Let us help others to eat the meat. It doesn’t come easy! Keeping Jordan entertained on our road trip was fun, but not necessarily easy. Encouraging a child in Christ can also be fun and not necessarily easy. Our being patient is not as easy as it is for God, but with God all things are possible. I often ask Jim; "Are we there yet"? How about you? "Are you there yet?" By Jane Ann Crenshaw 2/25/08