Did you ever have one of those
mornings? The kind that seems to start off well, but then goes downhill from
there? That’s what happened to me one Sunday morning while I was serving at
church.
I’ve been attending my church for
23 years. If it’s Sunday morning, I’m usually pulling into the parking lot
around 8:30 am and heading in to serve on a team. On this particular morning I
was serving as a greeter, one of my favorite jobs. I love being the first
person to smile and say good morning to someone who may or may not actually be
having a good morning. It sets the tone for the rest of the service for that
person entering the doors of the church. They see a smiling face, and
hopefully, that encourages them to smile, even if it’s a struggle. So to me,
it’s a very important job.

We finally made a decision and
walked inside the church and Robbie scurried off to save the seats. I assigned
this job to her because she does it so well. I ran off to get into place to
begin greeting those arriving for the morning church service. Once Robbie got
the seat saving task taken care of, she too ran to stand on her assigned door
to begin greeting.
After about 10 minutes or so a lady
in our church walked up to me and asked, “Do you drive a white SUV?”
“Yes,” I answered.
“Someone just told me you left your
car running in the parking lot.”
This is one of those moments when
you don’t quite grasp what the other person is saying. So I just gave her a
blank stare before answering.
“Did you say my car is running? You
mean like, right now it’s running?” I asked.
“Yes,” she responded. “I’ve done
that before. Is it a keyless starter?”
“Um, no it’s not,” I answered. I
was still standing at the door in disbelief.
“Maybe you’d better go and check on
it,” she said. “I’ll stand on your door while you go.”
“Oh, OK. Thanks!
I took off running to where Robbie
was greeting. Why, I do not know.
“Robbie, do you have the keys to
the car?” I asked. “Apparently we left the car running in the parking lot.
Quick, give me the keys so I can go turn it off.”
Now this statement made absolutely
no sense, which Robbie was happy to point out to me.
“Um, if the car is running the keys
must still be in the car. I wouldn’t have them,” Robbie cleverly responded.
With this revelation, I dashed out
of the church past people laughing and pointing. Apparently, word had spread
quickly about our running car. I guess we were the only ones who were not aware
we had forgotten to turn off the car when we jumped out that morning.
Robbie decided to take off running
behind me to see for herself. There we were; running like maniacs to the
parking lot, hair flying, mouths open, arms waving. We were a sight to behold.
When I arrived at the car I was
praying the door wasn’t locked. (I have also left a car running with the keys
locked inside, but that’s another story.) Fortunately, the door was not locked
and I could get inside to turn off the motor. But then I noticed something
else. The windshield wipers were running as well. However, it wasn’t raining.
How or why I ended up turning on the windshield wipers, I have no idea. It was
a mystery.
How could two of us walk away from
a running car, with the windshield wipers flipping back and forth and neither
of us notice at all? What’s two times zero?
I was speechless.
We went back inside to resume our
greeting jobs, while others laughed and pointed at us for the rest of the
morning. Apparently, one of the parking lot attendants noticed the running car,
told a security person who told a woman who knew we drove a white SUV. So a lot
of people knew before we did and it made for an entertaining moment when two
frantic ladies bolted out of the church in a sheer panic, running to rescue our
car. We had a good laugh ourselves. It was just one more of those funny things
we could add to our list of embarrassing moments.
Have you ever had one of those
moments of forgetfulness? You get busy or your mind is on a hundred other things
and your brain starts operating on cruise. You actually forget to do the basic
things that you do every day, like turn off the engine to the car. These
moments can be hilarious, but they can also be dangerous. Sometimes we can get
so busy we forget the one we serve; we forget God’s commands and we forget to
trust him for our needs and desires.
“Good friend, don’t forget all I’ve
taught you; take to heart my commands. They’ll help you live a long, long time,
a long life lived full and well.” Proverbs 3:1-2 (MSG)
Forgetting some things can be
harmless, but when we forget to put God first and to trust him for our needs,
then we are treading on dangerous ground. Remembering God and acknowledging him
in all things is the key to a long, well-lived life.
We spend so much time trying to
figure out how to live the best life and to provide the best life for our
family by staying busy, piling on more and more, focusing on minor things and
forgetting about the major things in life. But none of these are the answer to
an abundant life. Keeping God the center of your life is the only answer. If we
remember him, he will always remember us and provide for us.
A car left running in the parking
lot isn’t taking you anywhere. You have to get behind the wheel and put it in
gear. You have to let the car do what it is designed to do, take you places.
Having God in your life, but never letting him operate in your life is just as
useless. Allowing God to be in the center of your life will take you places you
never dreamed you’d go. You can’t afford to forget about him.
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