"Who Me?"

I awoke just before 6:00 AM this morning with a splitting headache.  As I rolled out of bed and determined to do something about it, I began to verbally agree with what the Word says concerning the healing of our bodies (check out Acts 10:38 for starters!).  After a few steps I found myself concentrating on a portion of the scripture in Philippians 4:7 that I wrote about last week.  What came popping up was another twist on the word “guard” where it says that God’s peace will “guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus.” (Gods Word ©) 

That little voice inside of me spoke out and said, “What does a guard do?” and my instant response was “protect.”  I then thought that in order to securely “protect” someone, a guard usually needs to be in close proximity to the individual in order to assure an instant response to any potential threat.  I also saw that the most efficient and effective guard would have to know the habits and overall personality of his client.  I would also think that the guard would need to be on familiar and positive terms with the one he is charged to protect.

This line of thought then led me to an incident that happened to us as we were driving away from the Tulsa airport soon after we arrived for our daughter’s wedding.  I had just driven the rental car away from the airport and onto the highway when I noticed a flashing blue light off to my right side.  Glancing over my shoulder, I noticed that we were passing an on-ramp and assumed that the light was emanating from some unseen traffic stop in that direction.  Suddenly I looked over to my left and noticed a Tulsa police cruiser pulling up next to be with the policeman pointing in my direction.  I quickly checked my speed, shrugged my shoulders and pointed incredulously back at myself and motioned as if to say “Who me?”  He nodded his head and pulled behind me as I slowed to the side of the road.

Needless to say, I was a little taken back and fumbled in an unsuccessful bid to find the button with which to lower the window. Finally I went for the door handle just as the officer opened the door.  He started to sternly ask me if I “noticed how dark it was in front of me” when he looked into the back seat where our two smiling daughters were sitting, stopped in mid-sentence and began to laugh.  He turned his gaze back to me and must have noticed my puzzled look and asked, “Is this a rental car?”  I returned his chuckle and said “It sure is!”  He then leaned inside, found the switch for the headlights and turned them on.  He laughed again, told us to “have a good night” and walked back to his car shaking his head!

I think that it was how quickly he arrived on the scene, along with his caring and humorous attitude that the Lord wanted me to see this morning.  The officer was there to “protect” us from injuring ourselves or someone else since we were driving without our lights on at 9:00 PM in the evening.

Our relationship with Jesus, through His word, should be that close and that instant so that His peace is always there to “protect” us from any difficulty that we may face.  Whether it be a situation we have with others, a test at school or an ache in our body, His peace is the “protection” we need to quickly find the correct solution.

That rental car was a confusing little compact.  I never did figure out how to change the radio stations!  But I did have the peace of mind to drive it with assurance and in safety throughout the rest of the week that we had it.  To me that is just like the “protection” that the peace of God offers us.  While we may not always know every little detail or function in our daily lives, we can rest assured that He is guiding us safely through and cause us to be able to do “everything (successfully) through Christ who strengthens me!”  (Philippians 4:13 Gods Word ©)  Stay tuned and keep asking yourselves… “What am I expecting today?”