Shifting Gears

I’m not sure what was tested more, his patience or my coordination, but my dad did succeed in teaching me how to drive a stick shift —a 1979 Datsun 510. I realize I just totally aged myself, but honestly, even way back then, I was the only one of my friends that had to learn to drive a stick. Actually, of our two family cars, the 510 was less geeky. As hard as it was to drive a stick, I did not want to drive our only automatic, an avocado green station wagon. Driving the “boat” would have been far worse for my reputation than stalling at intersections and rolling down the often greased hill that led to my high school parking lot—greased to embarrass new drivers forced by their parents to drive a stick!

I had thought those days were long behind me until Jeff decided our daughter Olivia should learn to drive stick. (Is this a dad thing?) Jeff believed a stick would make Olivia a better driver, prevent texting while driving, keep those who shouldn’t from borrowing her car, and, most of all, Jeff said a girl who drives a stick is irresistible. (Pretty sure I was not!)  I caved.  After all, we do live in Fresno now, Olivia’s routes are flat. 

I felt like a teenager again when I first drove Olivia’s bright blue VW Super Beetle. But I had forgotten a few things, like stick shifts like to roll backwards. After parking the bug in the church parking lot, I later found it had rolled from where I parked it, into the middle of the parking lot!  Thankfully the bug stopped rolling before it crashed into anything.  If you have ever driven a stick, you know they not only roll backwards if left in neutral, but they require acceleration to move forward at all. Unlike an automatic that will at least move forward slowly even without stepping on the gas.

I think I have mistakenly approached faith like driving an automatic. I will grow faster if I give it the “gas” of truth, obedience, holiness, love for others, but if I do nothing with my faith in Jesus, I will at least move slowly in the right direction. But that is not what we are seeing illustrated in the lives of the Old Testament kings and it is not what God’ teaches us in the New Testament. 

  

….make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Peter 1:5-8.

From our study of the Kings of Israel, I am reminded that faith is active; it is like driving a stick shift, not an automatic. When I “coast,” I roll backwards; I slide down greasy hills of compromise, roll backwards into idolatry and crash right into disobedience.

But each week, our study has also reminded me that God is active. His kindness draws us to repentance; His mercy is newly offered each morning; His power is given to “gas” my faith with virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection and love. And because the fuel He supplies is the life of His Son in me, these qualities can be every increasing, evidencing His Kingdom has come.

May we allow our Father to successfully teach us how to drive this thing called faith.

Needing Mercy,

Pattie