“How Long?”

Neal Pollard

Parents have heard this before and during a vacation or other long trip more times than they care to remember.  Children, “blessed” with a brief attention span, ask, “How much further?  When do we get there?”  Patience can be tried by not knowing how long before something happens and how long something will last. Yet, that is not simply something earthly parents encounter with their children.  The Heavenly Father will expect to hear that an infinite number of times from even His most faithful children.

In Psalm 13, David asks the question of His Father four times. What did He want to know from the Lord?

• How long will I be forgotten (1)?
• How long will I be neglected (1)?
• How long will I be sad (2)?
• How long will I be opposed (2)?

David wrestled with agony just as we often have. He needed resolution and longed for an answer. He is a child asking His Father, “How long?”

The answer was prayer (3-4), faith (5), worship and praise (5-6), and appreciation (6).  May I suggest that these will always be the answer when we are perplexed and filled with confusion? Our Father can always be trusted.  He will lead us safely to our final destination, even as we make it ever closer to home!  As we tell our children when they ask us “how much further,” “you are closer right now than you have ever been!”  Don’t give up before you get there!