A few years ago, I made a career change and found myself in need of a vehicle. For the first fifteen years of our marriage, my husband and I were able to make do with just one vehicle. The Lord had worked it out so that we worked together at the same company, we worked at different companies that were within walking distance of one another, or we had schedules that allowed us to share the car we had. However, at this point, one vehicle no longer would suffice.
We began our search during the Great Used Car Famine of 2021. We prayed for a specific car, but knowing that used cars were in short supply and that new cars were coming out of the factories slowly due to a microchip shortage, we were open to whatever reliable vehicle God would give us. After hours of researching, shopping, and negotiating, we were able to find a new car. It happened to be the exact model for which we had prayed, and we found it for a reasonable price.
What a blessing God had given us! We were super excited and grateful to take “Sapphire” home the next day. (Side note: if you do not give your car a name, do not be surprised when you have car troubles in the future!) Now, I am not a car expert or aficionado; my husband both laughs and cringes every time I tell people my car is a V-4. When I picked out my car, I chose the make based on reliability and the model based on size and the ability of use for various purposes. I did not go looking for the fanciest car with all the bells and whistles. However, this car did come with some nice, additional features.
One of these features is called “lane-keep assist.” If I were to veer out of my lane without using the proper turn signal, the car will basically fight me to keep me in my lane. The steering wheel will vibrate and shudder as it manhandles me back into my lane. I rarely trigger this feature because I am fairly consistent with using turn signals. My husband and Sapphire, however, have a knock-down-drag-out fight on just about every trip to church. As he is accustomed to driving his work trucks, he is not used to Sapphire’s delicate and refined requests.
One day, while heading to an appointment, I was traveling in the right lane when I attempted to get onto the interstate. As is common in most major cities in America, the roadways in Jacksonville are constantly under construction. What normally would have been a right lane that continued straight with a gentle shift to the on-ramp was now a sharp shift to the right in a zig zag pattern. I had not left my lane nor tried to turn, making the use of a turn signal unnecessary. However, Sapphire did not see it this way. She became hysterical. The steering wheel began shuddering and pulling left.
“It’s ok, Sapphire,” I said aloud in my car. “It’s just a lane shift.”
My words did not comfort Sapphire. She vibrated her steering wheel with more aggression. Then, she did something that I had never experienced her doing. She applied the brake! The car slowed in spite my foot firmly planted on the gas pedal. I flicked my blinker on and off quickly so she would stop her nonsense. The car following closely behind me swerved to the left to avoid a collision. I am sure he was thinking as he passed me, “What is this crazy woman driver doing?”
“What is wrong with you, Sapphire?” I shouted. “Have you lost your mind?”
I almost caused a collision while fighting with my vehicle all because I had not followed her rule. Now, from my perspective, the rule was ridiculous and rather unnecessary. The rule at this point was even wrong. However, it is HER rule. The manufacturers created this mechanism after many years of research. They had studied traffic patterns and driving habits for years, if not decades. Surely, they watched thousands of hours of crash videos from many perspectives. They had observed the collisions from an armchair quarterback perspective with the whole picture in mind. From study and experience, they knew just how to program this feature to provide the safest possible driving experience.
This is similar to the authority relationship between the Christian and God. God gave us the Bible as our supreme authority. We are to obey the rules in God’s Word, even when they may not make sense to us, because God sees the big picture. He knows the entirety of His plan. God also gave us spiritual authority in the form of parents, pastors, Sunday school teachers, etc. God puts them in our lives to help guide us in making wise decisions. Much like the car manufacturers, these spiritual authority figures have experience and wisdom from which to draw the sound advice we need to avoid the collisions in life.
About fifteen years ago, my husband and I sought advice from one of our spiritual authority figures. We met with him and explained our situation. He gave us some counsel that did not really sit well with me. As a matter of fact, in my stubborn mind, it seemed quite wrong; I was bothered when hearing this advice. His “nudges and shudders” of counsel to help keep us on the right path was not what I wanted to hear.
When we got home, I quietly expressed my concern to my husband. (Attention single ladies: this next part is why choosing the RIGHT husband is important.) My husband patiently listened to me, and then lovingly and firmly said, “It doesn’t matter what you or I think. The counsel he gave does not contradict the Bible. He is our God-given authority, and this is the advice he’s given us. We’re going to do it, and if––IF––he is wrong, God has promised that we have protection because we followed His authority. So, we’re going to obey and rest in God’s promise of protection.”
Thank God for godly husbands! When I wanted to ignore the “nudges and shudders,” my husband applied the brake and kept me in the right lane. Now, fifteen years later, I can say that the advice we were given was hard but wise. I can look back now and see the whole picture of how the entire situation played out until the end. It did not make sense to me at the time. I could not see the whole picture back then. It did not even seem right in my eyes. I cannot even boast that I obeyed that authority figure; I was obeying my husband and still skeptical of the authority figure. However, God still blessed immensely because of our yielding to His wise counselor, despite my lack of faith in him.
Just like Sapphire, God gives us safety features in the form of godly counselors. Hebrews 13:17 says, Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves:… God gives us the Bible, full of safety rules, to help us live our lives in the best service to Him. When life shifts, just like that lane amidst the construction cones, He gives us counselors to help direct us into the safest path forward. All we need to do is submit, heed the gentle “nudges and shudders,” and flick the blinker, allowing Him to guide us through the construction zones of life.
by Krystal Salm
