Staircase

When we first walked through the front door of our home five years ago, we marveled at the shiny, well-maintained hardwood floors and staircase. While these amenities were not on our short wish list, we were thrilled to have hearty floors, especially with a growing family.

The wooden staircase has been a source of entertainment for our Big Kids. They slide down on their bums, laughing with each jolt to the bottom, and straddle the slick wooden banister like expert firemen. WHATEVER. Just don’t act a fool, man.

The only rule we made and enforced with the passion of a drill sergeant is: Don’t hang out on the steps.

Our staircase is a vertical wooden walkway made of 15 steps that allows us to traverse between the floors in our home. Without it, there would be no way to move from where we are to where we need to go. Ideally, it should stay clear of items and human bodies.

Staircases work like bridges, connecting one place to another. 

One floor to the next. 

Point A to point B. 

Middle Earth, for you Lord of the Ring fans. 

Staircases weren’t designed to be places in which we settle, especially for two kids who aren’t always paying attention to the location of their feet.

You see where I’m going with this, right? 

Maybe you’re on The Staircase. You’re in the space that allows you to look back on where you’ve been, how far you’ve come in a certain part of your life. You know where you want to go but you’re not there yet. Maybe you feel stuck in the middle, not quite sure whether your goal/dream/holy nudge is still possible. Maybe you’re doubting whether that first step was ever worth the effort. 

Maybe you sensed a strong nudge toward adoption. Your heart bleeds for birth families in crisis, for kids in need of a stable family. You’ve completed your home study, worked hard to pay the necessary legal fees, humbly trusting the process, and now you’re waiting, consumed by pesky ‘what ifs’ and the nagging sense that maybe you misread that first nudge.   

Maybe you’re parenting a kiddo who’s made progress in a specific area of development. You see how far he’s come and you know his goals are attainable. But his pace has slowed a bit and your enthusiasm wanes. Now you question those goals and your parenting, and you’re wondering whether The Staircase will lead only to disappointment. 

Maybe you’re in a season of dream chasing. You know in your knower that the Divine put a specific dream within you and gave you specific gifts to serve others with that dream. You took intentional steps to invest your limited resources (and your whole heart) only to feel stuck in the middle, straining to see the part where it all comes together. You question God’s leading, your gifts, and whether you have what it takes to keep moving forward.  

For those of you on The Staircase, held between how far you’ve come and where you hope to be, here are two truths to remember:

• You’re not alone.
• There is purpose in the middle. 

The One who led you to take those first steps has not abandoned you. He is with you. He is for you and he is actively working, despite all appearances. May you rest in Emmanuel: God with you, God within you.

Seasons of waiting and wondering may feel pointless at times, but they are filled with purpose. There are skills to hone, lessons to learn, faith to strengthen, and character to refine. 

Unlike the steps in our home, it’s okay for you to hang out for a bit on The Staircase, to pause and pray about the next step, to remember how far you’ve come, and to rest in the promises of a God who is alive and active, even when circumstances appear otherwise. 

May we see The Staircase, not as a wasteland, but as a bridge to be traversed with the One who led us to it–in love, as he always does. 

Photo by Brodie Vissers from Burst