I think that when our focus shifts from Godly things and our attention is pulled toward living instead of life itself, we find ourselves in a fog like that. Sometimes, when it's just a small distraction, you can just look around a little bit harder and still find your way fairly easily. But sometimes, even when we really want our lives centered around God we get really distracted and we find ourselves in a situation like the fog on Thursday. As I leaned over the wheel, I found myself reacting to things immediately. A stop sign would suddenly appear and I would jump on the brakes. Or I'd see oncoming headlights and I'd hit the brakes and move a little farther toward the edge of the road. When I think about living life like that, I feel a little sick. I remember times when I was far from God and I could look no farther than what was happening right now in my life. All I could do is react to things as they came up, and sometimes that's a little overwhelming.
An added variable that I experienced that day was the result of temperatures hovering around freezing. As the fog fell on the roads, it formed an invisible layer of ice. This was not even "black ice" as we experience here so often. There was no sheen, no reflection...it was totally hidden....like a trap. But I drove. I drove excruciatingly slow. I leaned over the wheel and freaked every time I saw movement ahead of me. I turned the radio down. I stopped sipping my coffee. All I could do is lean forward and take it, whatever "it" was.
That's a terrible way to live. Not the driving part, I really enjoy that part of my job. But to live a life that consists of nothing more than squinting to see what your next problem is going to be just isn't spiritually healthy. Nor is it what God intended for us.
Later that day I looked outside and saw the rain falling. February rain in Indiana is no real shocker. In fact, we have a lot of those days and normally they make me feel a little down and maybe a little sleepy. But as I watched the rain that particular day, it occurred to me that the rain had cleared the fog, and had also washed the thin film of ice from the roads. How ironic....on a cloudy afternoon in February, the rain actually washed away the perils of the morning. Visibility was fine....all the schools were back in session. God had showed up for me in a most interesting way.
So if you find yourself leaning forward more often than you'd like, or if you're always squinting to try to see what trouble life is getting ready to give you, or if you just feel like you can't find your way through the fog in your life, remember this: God gave us Jesus Christ for a reason. God gave us Jesus so that in our times of confusion or fogginess we can call on Him. He'll come....He'll clear the way for us. In fact, He already has. In our times of fear, sadness, desperation, anger, or dread....we can call on Jesus. He doesn't promise us a lifetime of sunny days. But there's healing and clarity....even in the rain that will surely come. Just don't forget to call on Him when things are really great, too. He likes to hear "thank you" just as much as we do.
Living will always have its challenges, so it's in vain that we focus on happy living. Instead, let's praise the One who created life itself, and find joy in the offering of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Peace,
Mike
