What It's All About

Startled awake at 2:30 AM with my seven-year old daughter dancing over me with that emergency look telling me that we needed to get to a bathroom VERY quickly, my response was one not quite fit for the Father's Hall of Fame. After verifying the degree of need in the circumstance, which didn't take long at all, I frumped and grumped my way to my glasses, keys, and unzipped the door to our tent and started the hasty trek with her to the back door. Actually, I was quite impressed with her skill, fortitude, or whatever it takes to hold it that long. She really did quite well. Within moments, we were back in the tent, snuggling into our back-aching positions for another few hours of half-sleep. Just about the time that it dawned on me that my attitude could have been significantly better and I could have drummed up SOME semblance of a desire to serve and help my family, my wife graciously turned to me and uttered the words, "It's what camping is all about."

Is that true? Is camping just meant to be an exercise in stretching our ability to apply recent sermon points, understand the finer points of living out theological truths, and humbling ourselves by taking us off of our self-made pedestals? Well...yeah. As I spent the next hour or so trying to find the right combination of sheet/blanket coverage, pillow propping, and body angle to afford more rest, I concluded that not only is that what camping is all about, but the list just goes on and on. That's what breakfast is all about. That's what my commute to work is all about. That's what my reaction to computer problems is all about. That's what correcting my children's school work is all about. That's what coversations with my wife are all about. That's what answering the phone is all about. That's what greeting people at church, at the gas station, and in the neighborhood is all about. That's what spending money is all about. That's what life is all about.

We are put on the planet by God, who is full of grace. We are created in order to bring Him honor and glory and to extend that honor and glory in ways that He has in store for us in particular. That can happen in some odd circumstances. Even when startled awake by a potty-dance.