Today’s lesson is all about the WAIT. It is not a fun lesson to learn. But I suppose God thought it was one I desperately needed. For those who do not follow my life through my other blog (www.mvmillertime.wordpress.com) let me start with a brief explanation. The Hubby and I recently, Feb. 2017, purchased a 2002 58’ Kadey Krogen trawler. This is a great boat for traveling up and down the coast, but also for much longer voyages and we are excited about our future adventures with her. But FIRST, we must wait.
For the last few months she has been in South Florida getting painted and having some other work done. We were to have her back in the water and ready to bring to our home on the Chesapeake by early April…then the wait began. There were delays, glitches, issues…all common occurrences in the boat yard world…but after a loooong wait, we finally had her back in the water and were headed for home. We stopped again along the Intracoastal Water Way (ICW). This was a planned visit to Stuart Fl, at a marina where additional work would get done. We figured it’d be about a week…NOPE, we are now close to 2 weeks of waiting for completion of a final project.
Obviously I am NOT to be pitied…I am, after all, sitting on a nice boat, in a beautiful marina, in sunny Florida. I am not waiting on a lifesaving organ donation, the birth a child or the results of a life impacting test…I am just waiting to go home, on our boat. To consider this a “life lesson” seemed a bit shallow, even for me…but then I remembered…my God is always revealing Himself. He does not play hide and seek….His handiwork is all around me, as are the ways he nudges me towards becoming the person He desires me to be. So, I decided to pay attention.
For us to resume our travels homeward we are reliant on a few details….we need all the important parts to the boat to arrive and be installed, we need the forecasted weather to NOT include “squalls and high winds”, and we need to be able to move her prior to Scott leaving for a week of work in Seattle. By Tuesday of this week, it became clear that our departure dates were not certain. The fellas working on our fuel injectors said they were waiting on parts.
This next phase of waiting was made a bit more painful by a span of PERFECT travel weather. We continued to wait at the dock while several of our fellow boaters were able to take advantage of low winds, clear skies and an enviable full moon for running through the night.
We DID have a wonderful distraction from the waiting when friends came to visit and I was able to go visit my niece, her husband and my new great nephew.
Scott and I have had several talks about our plans; plan A, plan B, plan C and even plan D. While we have a goal to get home, hopefully by end of May, it is most important to at least be past the Florida/Georgia line prior to June 1st for insurance reasons.
We have adjusted our plans and expectations every day. It is surprising how hard it’s been to settle down and accept the waiting.
In my quiet time this morning, as I was praying for God to make everything work out so we could move this boat, the lesson hit home with a thud. I was praying for the people working on our boat, for safe weather, for the boat to be ready, for Scott’s schedule to work out and I realized….Those are ALL things not in my control, but totally in God’s. Hmmm, why would God not have already organized those things my way? Maybe, just maybe, HIS plans for us and our boat are not the same as mine? I know His plans and His timing are best. I know He is always working in our favor, even if we do not see it clearly. At this thought I could feel myself relax. I breathe in, I breathe out and I say to my God “Okay, whatever You plan, whenever You desire, however is best, I am ready to adjust. It does not have to be my plan…I will wait for You.”
“Rest in the Lord. wait patiently for Him to act…don’t fret and worry….
it only leads to harm” Psalm 37:7-8 LB
(update: In the middle of posting this, Scott informed me our work will not get done until Monday. Which means I will stay here with our dog Charlie and wait for his return from Seattle. Then MAYBE we will get to leave. My heart is at ease, my patience restored and I feel ready to face whatever needs to be done while he is away. I am up for the WAIT.)
Tuesday With Teri 