~ Driving Class ~
December 17-23, 2007

My son Tyler turned… (I still can’t believe that I am saying this) fifteen years-old last month. And it should come as no shock to you that right after his birthday; he wanted to do what every other fifteen year-old wants to do…learn to drive. I was quite reluctant to say the least…but he was persistent (and he’s a really good kid). So, Laurie and I ordered the “teach at home” kit from the Texas DPS and started our instruction with “Young Son” as we like to call him. Tyler is really a quick study, but we worked on the book for much more than the required number of hours. And so…last week…my formerly “little boy” passed the DPS test for a “learner’s permit” and got behind the wheel of the enormous Stafford Suburban and hit the roadways of Baytown under the watchful and paranoid eye of his preacher/driving instructor dad. If you’d been on the inside of the vehicle, you would have heard verbal gems from me such as, “Whoa!” “Blinker…Blinker” “A little easier on the brakes” “Get away from that eighteen wheeler” “Hands at ten and two on the wheel” And of course, “Good job son…I’m proud of you” came out a time or two as well. And even though Tyler has been dong an excellent job of learning to drive…I still have a lot to learn about patience when it comes to wearing my “driver instructor’s hat.”

As I reflected on my desire to control all the variables and make sure that my son doesn’t make any mistakes on the road…the Lord used this moment in time to remind me that He’s been “Oh-so patient” with me for well over forty-four years. You see, I don’t always do what “The Book” tells me to do…and I’ve made a whole lot of mistakes driving the road of life. But amazingly…My Heavenly Father still loves me…still cares for me…still guides me…still protects me…in spite of my sometimes “uncanny inability” to grasp His plan for my life. And you know what? He loves you too. Merry Christmas!