It turns out you need both front tires of your car pointing the same direction if you want to go anywhere. This morning, Krissy and I were attempting to back out of our parking space to go to school and work when the steering wheel started jiggling. The car moved erratically and wasn’t doing what I wanted it to. It veered back and forth and when I tried to drive forward it just sat there, with the steering wheel turning on its own and still jiggling while we began to smell hot rubber. I hopped out to see what was wrong and saw that the front left tire was facing forward but the front right tire was turned sharply to the right. Uh oh. That can’t be good. We had to get the car towed to the shop because that tire, for whatever reason, wasn’t responding to the steering wheel or the direction I was trying to drive.
I’ve been thinking about change a lot lately, probably because we have some big changes coming up soon for our family. Even though change happens all around us all the time and is a part of life, we still resist it. That tendency seems to be built into most people’s core. We veer toward what is familiar, what we already know, what is comfortable or seems good from past experience. What if Jesus is turning the steering wheel a different and new direction? Especially when it comes to teams, families, churches, or other groups who say they have the same goal, all the people have to respond to the direction and turn the same way or no one is going anywhere. Resisting or being stubborn can cause the whole endeavor to come to a swerving, smelling-like-hot-rubber halt or at least make it a hundred times more difficult for the other “tires” trying to move along.
Our daughter Krissy was a little like our wayward tire when we first started talking about moving a few months ago. It’s understandable – it wasn’t in her plan, wasn’t her first choice, and didn’t seem comfortable. Over time, however, I’ve watched as God made needed repairs and adjustments and helped her see that following His lead was the best plan. Sunday, before John officially accepted the offer to move to another state to pastor a church, we asked her once more how she was feeling and what she was thinking. She said it would be hard and we agreed with her. Then she said, with some emotion, “But I feel like God has plans for me there.” Our hearts swelled. Our little tire was facing the same way as us again! Now we can move forward as a family, letting Jesus steer.
If you’re facing changes and feeling resistant, ask God to repair your heart and attitude and help you not be the wayward tire. You don’t want to hold up what God has in mind for your family, your church, your friends, do you?
This morning I had the thought that if we could get a higher altitude view of life, especially in the moments when we’re mired down in the weeds or mud of a tough circumstance, it would make it easier to go on. Imagine walking through a late summer corn field when the corn’s taller than you are, following someone who is cutting a path or design in the field. From the ground’s perspective it would all look very much the same: rustling rows of green corn stalks as far as the eye could see. If you could fly up above the field and look down, however, you’d see the design taking shape. You might even have an “Aha!” moment, smiling and saying, “I get it now.”
Along the Narrow Path 