I found myself parked on a bike in front of a mechanics shop in need of air for my tires so that I could make it to school on time without killing myself to get there.
In Cambodia, we had the honor of biking to school every morning.
For a few days I had biked to school with low tires and convinced myself that I would be fine without air. However, after a few days of rough and bumpy travel, I realized that it wasn’t fine and an intervention had to take place. The way I was peddling to get to and from school made me feel like Lance Armstrong, but in reality, I probably wasn’t moving any faster than a snail. My legs were on fire and I was swimming in a pool of sweat by the time I got off.
A bike is good transportation, but without air in its tires, it does no good for the traveler.
As I sat in front of the shop, I watched the mechanic attach the air dispenser to the tire valve and life filled the tires. Immediately, I could tell a HUGE difference in the way I biked with air-filled tires verse air-less tires.
And it reminded me…
All I needed was air.
And everyday, in order to live in His Kingdom, I need air.
Not only the air that is essential to life, but the air that comes only from Jesus.
The kind of air that I need more than the next breath of air I breathe.
This air is life filling and refreshing. It’s the air that allows your “cup overflow” (Psalm 23:5). It’s never polluted, never thin. No, this air is good. It brings rest and energy.
So, in order to find that air, we have to take time to find Him. We have to find those moments we can steal away with Him; those moments where it’s only Him and you.
It’s easy to become distracted with the everyday needs that pull and tug like a child begging for his mother’s attention. Ignoring doesn’t solve problems nor is it the existence of those things that are bad–it’s how we handle them. Sometimes, you have to teach your child to wait and that’s exactly what we have to do with the demands that can honestly wait so that we can taste and see all that the Lord has for us. Because life without air is no life at all.
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:33
