The Funeral Procession For My Car

Many years ago when we got my car we walked out nothing short of a classic miracle story of a divine plan and some appearing to be crazy circumstances.  Dan and I had been in need of a vehicle.  We’d planted some seed toward it.  I happened to be visiting my parents in Ohio for a wedding, and got in touch with a friend of the family who is employed by a dealership and has always gotten us great deals on cars.  Long story short though I had plans to fly back to FL, after spending time on the phone with Dan and the family friend (sometimes at the same time) we ended up purchasing this vehicle at the same amount we’d sown seed for over the dealer price.  However they’d needed Dan's signature for the car loan, so my mother, oldest daughter, and myself were permitted to take it on a really “long test drive” to Florida.  So my mother could get Dan’s signature on the paperwork, and fly back to Ohio.  Dan bought the car sight unseen.  Through a series of events we had the car paid off two years later. 

We knew that that car had seen better days.  Now many years later I could list all the problems with it.  It’s been a stable vehicle, but as most vehicles go the time comes they simply aren’t worth repairing.  For a list of reasons my husband and I had plans to sell it sometime between two weeks to two months from now.  It’s is now our second vehicle, and for a short period of time we’d agreed it was best to go down to one. 

Somehow I think the car got wind of our plans because on Saturday as Dan and I and my youngest daughter drove back from the store, my trusty vehicle decided it was done.  Well, it wasn’t completely done. . .it sputtered, stalled and stopped.  Dan pulled over right away.  It wasn’t anything obvious.  Praying all the way to the house as the car stalled at every light, driving with our flashers on, and hearing cars behind us zoom around us it was as if we had a funeral procession for my car.  We’re pretty sure it’s the engine, and that’s more than we’re willing to put into it.

I’ll admit the frustration at it dying just before we decided it was time. I’ll admit a moment of discouragement.  But we had to make the choice for it not to get us down.  Something’s in life are just beyond our control, and you have to learn to just roll with it whether you think you’re ready to or not.

Recently someone asked me in an interview about how one learns to move with God in ministry and life, and essentially my response was, “You have to learn to just go with it.  My dad always says, “In life you have to learn to play the hand you’re dealt.”  In essence the Bible echoes a similar statement. 

Matthew 5:25-31

Do Not Worry

²⁵ “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

²⁸ “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; ²⁹ and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

³¹ “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

            I confess I have spent too much of my life as a worrier.  I’m working on it.  But the Bible teaches us you can’t do it.  You have to play the hand your dealt.  Trust God, and know He’s got it all worked out.  I can’t control the fact my car wanted to die earlier than I wanted it to.  But I can control how I react to it.  I can keep my chin up, and just keep going forward.  It’s like a hurdler running a race.  I have to just jump over the hurdle whether I planned it to be there or not.  If I stop too long to over analyze it, I’ll just trip. 

            Whatever it is in your life that you’re annoyed, frustrated, and worrying about, stop worrying.  Keep moving forward.  There is a new season busting forth.

            God has awesome plans for your life.  Get excited!