October 30, 2017
“He never wanted it to be what it had become.”
In 2004 while pastoring in California and working as a truck driver, these words came to my mind as I traveled north on Highway 395. I am still not sure what they were supposed to mean, but there was such an urgency about them in my mind that after I fought the urge for about ten minutes, I stopped all 18 wheels and proceeded to write them on the notepad I kept for just such an occasion.
So, there I was, in the middle of the desert north of Mojave, California, intending to be about a half minute or so, when I smelled something. It was not a bad smell, but it was familiar, and I knew what it was. Looking out of my windshield, there it was steam billowing from under the hood. A coolant line had sprung a fairly small hole, just a quarter inch or so, but under the immense pressure of the 190-degree water and antifreeze, it was making quite a show. By the time it was done, we had replaced five gallons of fluids, and my half minute turned into five and one-half hours waiting on the mechanic to arrive with a spare hose and repair my engine.
Now there is a point to my story. You see, if God had not stopped me long enough to jot a quick note to myself, or if I had chosen to use my micro cassette recorder rather than my pen, I might not have even noticed the leak until the engine had overheated and possibly been seriously damaged. The steam would have passed unnoticed right under my truck at 55 MPH. But God got my attention in an abnormal way and got me to do something I would not normally do. It was then that the situation became clear, even though I still have no idea which of the possible meanings the original phrase may have held. That is, except that God needed to get my attention in that moment.
So, is God trying to get your attention and cause you to see what might not be clear any other way? Are you feeling an urgency to do something you might not ordinarily do, like stop a truck in the middle of the dessert to write a few words, and you cannot get that thing off your mind? Are you annoyed by that strange thing because it is so unusual yet pervasive?
We are not too far from another new year. We are heading into that 60 days of holidays we face at the end of each year. I wonder if God has something out of the ordinary just waiting around the bend. I wonder if it’s time that He will shake something up. Maybe we’ll have to wait to see what happens when things are not as normal as we find comfortable. God may have something in that out of place event we need to see. Perhaps it will lead us to something we must do. Perhaps it will be the thing which will give us new understanding of our purpose and help us get back on the road.
Anyhow – I certainly hope so.
See You SONday,
Pastor Steve
© 2017 Dr. SF Gallagher