For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been meeting myself coming and going. Just a lot of odds and ends in my life that have required me to be too many places in a day. I’m not one who typically runs late, but I had a lot of these destinations back-to-back and I found myself CONSTANTLY hitting the lights on red.
For those of you who know me well, you know I am NOT a patient driver. I found myself complaining out loud to God about all the red lights he was throwing into my path. I think I heard myself saying things like, “Really God??? Not a-NOTHER red light. UGH!!!” Yeah, it wasn’t pretty and I’m not proud of it. I even told God I wanted a green light life. Hence the title.
Ironically, about a year ago, I wrote a 14-day devotional entitled, “Hand-in-Hand with Jesus,” and one of the devotionals had this title, “Why Am I Hitting All These Red Lights?” Hmmmm…suspiciously similar to today’s post. Apparently I’ve learned very little about this in the past year!
So, for my sake and hopefully for all of yours, I am going to piggyback onto some of the points I made in that daily devotional. Because, sadly, most of the points I made haven’t changed. Other than I’ve gone from complaining about the red lights to demanding a green light life! Sigh…
It’s a little silly, isn’t it? And a lot mistaken! Deep down, I know that some of the lights were green. I was just caught up in the “hurriedness” of the moment.
But it got me reflecting on how often I think that’s true of my Christian walk. Does God really throw all red lights into my life? Is he standing in the way of where I want to go? And how quickly I want to get there?
I know better. While it can often feel like God is hindering my plans, deep in my soul, this is what I know to be true:
- I’m often blind to the green lights God generously sprinkles into my journey, seeing only the hindrances.
- My desire to hurry up and arrive at my destination is often in direct conflict with what God wants for me.
- My insistence on breaking the speed limit (living outside of God’s will) is exactly what brings me to the red lights!
- Resting at a red light is good for my soul.
- Ultimately, every red, yellow, and green light is purposely placed in my life by God for my ultimate good.
What is the pace of your Christian walk (or drive)? Are you speeding through the yellow lights? Sitting impatiently at the red ones? Or are you dutifully driving the speed limit and obeying all traffic lights?
I know I’m as guilty in my Christian walk as I am on my earthly drives. It’s important that we develop a sense of peace and calm in our routines. The best way I know to do this is to, as the cliché tells us, put Jesus in the driver’s seat. Give him the wheel.
I often hesitate to use clichés and yet they can speak in the language we understand. We know what it means for someone else to be sitting behind our wheel while we relax in the passenger seat.
That’s what Jesus wants for us. A complete trust in the how, when, and where of our journeys, when he’s in charge of the car.
Maybe THIS year, I can learn this lesson!
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
Lamentations 3:25
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