My Disney World Expedition- Part 2

“You have to go on this one, mom! It’s the newest one, based on that movie we just watched.

I hesitated for a moment.

The previous day’s events were still fresh on my mind.

According to the description of the attraction, I would: “Climb atop a winged mountain banshee for a breathtaking 3D flight…”

“This is the Fast Pass lane, right?” I asked as we stood at the end of the very long line.

“Sorry mom,” one of them responded, “but there are no Fast Passes for the good rides. We’ll have to stand in line for a little while.”

The “little while” ended up being over two hours, during which I rode a rollercoaster of anxiety, excitement, and curiosity of what laid ahead combined with the joy of spending time with my family.

I walked out of that ride wondering if I had just survived a trip to the moon or falling down the Niagara Falls. I wanted to strangle them all(again), but I was too dizzy to walk in a straight line.

Even though I’d never I confess it, I enjoyed it as much as I hated it.

I decided to go back to the hotel and recover by the pool the rest of the day, which allowed me to reflect on the experience.

The Lord taught me a second lesson.

The twists, turns and sharp dips we face in life usually don’t pass as quickly as the Disney rides do.

We wish for problems to be resolved, relationships to mend, and bodies heal quickly.

However, many times there are no Fast Passes through tough times.

We have to wait… for the medical treatment to take effect, the wayward child to return home, that relationship to mend or a dream to come true.

There is one thing we do have, and that is hope.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, hope is “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen; a feeling of trust.”

The Bible explains it in Romans 15:13 like this:

 May God, the source of hope, fill you completely with all joy and peace as you continue trusting…

As I waited in line for over two hours, I had a nervous knot in my stomach, but I also eagerly waited for a ride filled with excitement and thrilling surprises.

Similarly, we can experience peace and joy in the middle of the “waiting” for things to resolve. We achieve that by trusting, not only that He is with us through it all, but also that He promises that:

Everything works together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28)

We visited five parks in five days, after which I needed a vacation to recover from that vacation.

I still have PTSD from the nausea inducing monsters, but that pales in comparison to the life lesson I received, one I will never forget.