The recent Grand Prix race in Detroit got me thinking about that feeling. However I imagine it, the feeling is the same: a loss of control, almost no movement, or things going sideways when I’ve got the pedal to the metal and I’m gripping the wheel with everything I have. Then, with a bit of panic, I call upon God to rescue me.
I, like many people, like to be in control. But a dear friend and spiritual advisor likes to remind me that it’s our job to turn our day over to God at the beginning of each day, not after we’ve made a mess of things! Turning control over to God, though, requires trust. It is a different way of seeing the world, being receptive to the signs of God’s presence and direction, rather than simply forging ahead with our own roadmap and agenda.
The funny thing is that, as believers, experience tells us we are never really in full control of our lives. God is. God has a plan, and we can either take a step back and read the signs, going with the flow of Love, Goodness, and Truth (meaning God’s presence and influence), or we can attempt to take the wheel ourselves, dodging and weaving through the traffic of life, thinking we know a better way, or the “right” way. With that attitude, we create our own chaos, even to the point of hopping the curb and creating chaos for others.
Summer gives us all an opportunity to take a breath and recommit ourselves to discerning God’s presence and plan for our lives. May we all feel the ease and flow of God at the wheel, following the GPS of God’s Positioning System, which fits into the other GPS: God’s Plan of Salvation. When we do, we are blessed with the peace that comes from knowing we are headed in the right direction.
