The Football Banquet

Last night, Noodle and I had the opportunity to go to the football banquet to celebrate a fantastic year of football.  We are so impressed with the Titans program.  Noodle was born to play football.  He loves it.  And this opportunity to play with dedicated, talented coaches was a true blessing.  There were so many nights that I would take him to practice and marvel at the commitment of the coaches.  They were there every practice...in rain...wind...heat...and cold.  So, last night was an opportunity to celebrate the completion of the season, mingle with friends, eat some delicious food and collect the trophy and pictures.
Now, lets be honest parents...when you go to something like this, you are looking forward to two things.  You are excited about the people and of course, the food.  But, this banquet didn't go as I had expected.  We arrived at 6:30.  We were told that they would go through some of the teams, we would eat, and they would finish handing out trophies.  So, you can imagine our mystified faces, when the food came out at 7:30, and we didn't eat it until 8:30.  It was pure torture.  A certain man (who will remain nameless on here) spoke FOREVER!  And when the crowd wasn't quiet enough to hear him speaking, he would stop speaking altogether, a la second grade teacher.  He would wait for silence and continue.  At first it was funny.  Is this really happening?  Then it became downright annoying.  I mean, talk about torture!  You have a room full of adults and (hello) hungry football players.  We could see the food, we could smell the food, and we were getting completely impatient for the food.  I wanted to scream, enough already, WE WANT TO EAT!
Interestingly, my physical needs made me reflect on my spiritual ones.  I truly believe that God wants us to have that same impatience and drive for being in eternity with Him.  Our hearts should be so hungry for Him that we don't even want the fluff that comes before the feast.  The two hours of "talk" should be a reflection of my life here on Earth.  Important, but not the best part of the event.  There are so many times when I long for Christ.  I get bored, impatient, and lonely with this life.  When I read the Bible, my senses are triggered and heightened.  I can almost smell eternity.  I can almost taste the joy of being with Him.  That is the urgency that I want to live with.  We have a hunger that only he can satisfy.  This world is full of emptiness.  Even the best moments here are but a glimpse of what it will be like to be with Jesus. (Thanks Pastor, for your teaching on Heaven at Metro)  I read this scripture this morning and it was so comforting to me.  It is almost like the feeling you get when you are at a great party, but you remember that you have an even better party the next day.  It is that sense of expectation.  So, as you read these words from Jesus in the book of John, try to capture that same sense of expectation and hunger.  Jesus is preparing a place for us and we will be with him.  I don't know about you, but that gives me hope for whatever I face here on Earth.
John 14:1-3 (NLT)
Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.  There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.
Now, THAT is a banquet worth waiting for!!!!!