ART BY PAUL BOECHER

Summer vacations – ah, the days of swimming at the lake, long walks, lazy days, fun times with family. I remember one family vacation in particular when our two oldest were in high school and our youngest just entering her tweens. We looked forward to that trip and planned it for months. We were going out west to take a ride on the Road to the Sun.

The sun didn’t show up for more than a few minutes on that whole trip. Everyone got very tired of being together in a van that was on a quest to the west coast and a first look at the ocean. No more singing camp songs. Tensions were mounting fast and to tell you the truth fun times with family just weren’t happening. When we finally reached Washington state we never actually got to see the ocean. It was fogged in.

Sometimes the things we plan for in life don’t turn out the way we want them to. Our expectations are high in the beginning, then we fall prey to disappointment. Our natural tendency is to feel sorry for ourselves and try to plan things that won’t discourage us. Instead, God tells us not to be discouraged. He has wonderful things in store for us. The truth is, we aren’t going to have smooth sailing in this world, but our future life in eternity will be a breeze!