Melanie watched snow flurries envelope the ground in a blanket of white. She wasn’t worried about the snow. After all, the weatherman said accumulations would only be 2”. Unconcerned, Melanie curled up by the cozy fire contentedly sipping hot chocolate before drifting to sleep.
After awaking from a peaceful slumber, Melanie threw open the curtains. A snow storm! Blindsided by the weather change, anxiety crept in erasing the peace she had felt moments ago.
Snatching her phone, she called her neighbor Cal who owned a monster F-250 truck. Having gained his skills one step at a time by practicing in North Dakota, he was an expert driver in the snow. Relief washed over her when he agreed to chauffer her to work.
On their drive, blinding snowfall diminished visibility. Cars invisible moments before suddenly appeared in their headlights. Snow plows moved before them clearing a path on the highway. As Cal expertly handled every obstacle, Melanie contentedly sipped her coffee feeling safe with Cal at the wheel.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN BLINDSIDED?
Hasn’t changing weather blindsided us all? When snow is predicted, we get prepared. But who’s prepared when the weather suddenly changes from snow flurries to a blinding snow storm?
Unexpected weather conditions
remind me
of situations in life.
We prepare for things we expect, like the weather. Then BAM! Things change and we are blindsided! Our thoughts reel imagining the hazards that can ensue causing anxiety to erase our peace.
We long to escape by contentedly sitting in front of a cozy fire sipping hot chocolate. However, life doesn’t always give us that option, does it? Sometimes we have to go through situations that blindside us.
SO, HOW DO WE DRIVE THROUGH THEM?
PERHAPS WE DON’T.
We can’t necessarily avoid going through situations that blindside us, but we don’t have to drive. Just as Melanie called on an expert driver with a monster truck, we too have someone we can call. Who is this expert driver? Jesus.
Because the Lord loves us,
He goes before us like the snow plow
clearing a path for us.
And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you.
He will be with you,
He will not leave you nor forsake you;
do not fear nor be dismayed,
Deuteronomy 31:8
He is not only an expert, but is more powerful than any monster truck with the ability to handle any obstacle.
Ah, Lord God!
Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth
by Your great power and outstretched arm.
There is nothing too hard for You,
Jeremiah 32:17
As an expert driver, even in the snow storm Cal anticipated the cars suddenly appearing in his headlights. The Lord is an expert who anticipates what we will encounter driving us over, around or through obstacles.
LOOK WHAT THE LORD DID FOR THE ISRAELITES!
The Israelites may not have faced a blinding snow storm, but they were certainly blindsided! Imagine the relief and peace they felt having escaped slavery in Egypt.
Then BAM! The Egyptian armies with 600 chariots are coming towards them! Behind them is the Red Sea! They are trapped! Good old Moses stepped in with faith and the Lord took the wheel driving them not over or around, but through the obstacle.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea;
and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night,
and made the sea into dry land,
and the waters were divided.
So, the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground,
and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left,
Exodus 14:21-22
When we are blindsided,
and by faith let the Lord take the wheel
He will drive us
to safety too.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6
WE CAN PREPARE TO BE BLINDSIDED!
Preparing for the unexpected seems impossible, doesn’t it? Yet, we can.
How did Cal get to be an expert driver in the snow? By perfecting his skills with lots of practice Cal built his skills one small step at a time.
We build our faith
one small step at a time as well.
Like Cal practiced his skills, we practice our faith by asking the Lord for help with one small thing at a time. As our faith grows for small things, it builds into faith that the Lord can take care of things that blindside us. Practicing our faith enables us to take our hands off the wheel and allow Jesus to drive.
Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you,
1 Peter 5:7 NIV
BLINDSIDED?
LET JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL
&
BE A CONTENTED PASSENGER.
REFLECTION
Can you practice your faith with one small thing today?
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, as I write Proverbs 3:5-6 and say it aloud, help me to grow my faith for small things so, that when I am blindsided, by faith I allow Jesus to take the wheel. In Jesus name. Amen.
IN FAITH, LET JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL
Comment!
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Photo dog/hat, Tadeusz Lakota
Photo Red Sea, FreeBibleImages
