My car is a retraining machine.

These days before Christmas, when I’m all alone in my car with the radio off, I find myself paying attention to my thoughts and feelings, my response to different situations I encounter while driving.  Jesus is using my car to retrain me in a better way of living – less confident-I-know-what’s-best-for-me.  This is the most-sanctifying thing I do all week.  I drive 1.25 hrs one way to a forty-five-minute smorgasbord lunch, all by myself, twice a week.  Retraining time.

How so?  Mostly two-lane roads with no-passing the entire way, so when I get behind a slow truck, or little old lady driving a Buick, instead of getting irritated, I thank Him for reminding me that I dunno what’s best, dunno when I need to get to my destination, what He might have for me in slowing me down, retraining me to depend on Him, not Dave’s wisdom/understanding of what’s best.

And when the truck or little old lady turns off the road, I used to rejoice.  Now, I’m more likely to thank Him that I dunno what’s best.  Same with a traffic light that’s been green a long time as I approach from afar, and stays green long enough for me to get through the intersection, which in the past would have been reason for rejoicing.  ConfidentDave.  Or “worse” — one that’s been green for a long time and just as I approach the intersection, turns red.

And while I’m enjoying my forty-five-minute smorgasbord lunch, I get to pay attention to how my people watching combined with my confidence-I-know-what’s-best, fuels my critical/judgmental spirit toward the way others look, dress, eat, act.  JudgeDave.  Who needs confidence-he-knows-what’s-best, to do his job.

Thank You, Jesus, for coming to earth to sacrifice Yourself for the likes of Dave McCarty, and for beginning to retrain this believer in a better way to live this Christmas – less confident-I-know-what’s-best.

–ConfidentDave, A.K.A. ShepherdDave, agendafied, intense, hurried and stressed, needing fresh conviction of the sin of confidence-he-knows-what’s-best, so he might momentarily be DumbSheepDave, enjoying the bliss of Jesus-dependency/humility/clueless-he-knows-what’s-best, so the pre-believers around him might experience Jesus this Christmas

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