“Leavin' On A Jet Plane”

Saturday, September 08, 2012

I'm thinking of traveling internationally for a while.  I don't like having an itinerary to be tied to, so I'll just come and go when I feel like it.  Here's the problem: my mom thinks that I need to get my own job and move out.  I'm young!  I need to see the world.  Isn't there something in the Bible to show my mom that she's holding me back from true experiences?  (She's a Christian, so she'll believe whatever is in there).  I want to go as soon as I get enough for airfare, so a quick answer would get rid of the guilt she uses to manipulate me.

Sincerely,
Ready to LIVE!

Dear Ready to LIVE!,

Get a J-O-B.  If you won’t work, you shouldn’t eat either (2 Thess 3:10).  What if your parents had been “come and go when I feel like it” people?  If they had been that way, you wouldn’t have a stable home-life to mooch off of!  Bear the yoke in your youth and get to work (Lam 3:27).  When you have labored and strived, then you can enjoy the blessings of your labor (Eccl 5:18).  There is nothing wrong with traveling to see the world, but you should only enjoy that blessing after you’ve worked for it and gained the wisdom to do it properly.  The verse I would show your mother is, “Answer a fool according to his folly” (Pr 26:5); if you want to see the world, she should move you out herself, so you can see it authentically.

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