In an effort to be economical, I decided to combine my drive to work with an errand - dropping some books off at the library. It was a beautiful morning and so I was driving with the windows down in a vehicle that my friend had graciously loaned me. I got out of the car at the library and by force of habit, pressed the lock button as I did so. When I got back to the vehicle I thought that I would just unlock the door by pulling up the button. BIG MISTAKE! The car's anti-theft system assumed that I was trying to steal the vehicle and began that loud blaring you hear so often from parked cars. I quickly got in and tried to start the vehicle but said anti-theft system would not allow me to do so.
By this point I was quite flustered and so jumped out of the vehicle. All kinds of options ran through my mind (including trying to open the hood and disconnect the horn!). As I stood there feeling rather panicked and a little embarrassed - I couldn't help but wonder what people going by were thinking of me - I took a deep breath and groaned..."God help me!". Instantly an idea came to mind - put the key in the lock and turn it. VOILA! The alarm went off allowing me to start the vehicle and drive away.
As I made my way to work thinking over what had happened, God spoke to me. In my initial state of panic, I was not able to think rationally about what I could do to rectify the situation, but when I literally stepped out of the situation by exiting the car and took the opportunity to ask for help, it was there. So often when I am in a difficult situation I feel the need to be doing something, to try to manipulate circumstances so that they move from difficult to not so difficult. Most times, it doesn't help. It's when I stop and give God the chance to move and/or to speak to me that I see change take place.
Why is it that I find it so hard to heed God's invitation to let Him do His thing? Once again I am challenged by an old chorus that simply repeats the the first half of Psalm 46:10...
"Be still, and know that I am God."
And by Moses' word to the children of Israel as they fled through the dessert...
“Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today." Exodus 14:13
The sincere desire of my heart is that the next time I begin to panic - for whatever reason - I will step back, take a breath and call on God. Stay tuned - I really want to have some amazing stories to share with you as He does what He does so well - is God in my life.
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