Driving in negative windchill fills my soul with dread.
Why?
Being raised in ND, driving and walking in -20 and-30 every winter is daily life.
I remember my fiance’s California vehicle stopping in traffic because the cold. (Vehicles in ND come with heating blocks to plug and warm the engine on cold nights, California vehicles do not) The extreme cold would cause the fuses to break in the panel. After a while we carried extra fuses fix it quickly.
Today I will run two miles in this weather, why does driving give me fear?
My blood pressure is rising, because I desire an answer that cowers to my fears.
What happened to PEACE? THE PEACE THAT PASSES UNDERSTANDING?
Perfect Love casts out fear. Who is in control? Love or Fear?
It doesn’t take long for me to understand I didn’t check and double check that I heard God correctly.
Instead I decided God is agreeing with me!
I announce to my husband God is saying church is canceled for the cold temperatures.
He said, “You are crazy!”
Church was not canceled and I was able to drive faster than most of the winter’s snowy days. It was a good service and I had enjoyable conversations. I’m glad I went!
I remember back when I learned this lesson the first time 25 years ago.
When the three of us were living in Florida, we adults wanted to return to the North country. One day, my husband receives a job offer from some lady in Chicago.
He asks, “Pray for wisdom!”
I try to pray, but confusing excitement with an answer prematurely stops my prayer!
My desire to return to cold country overplays my desire for a true answer.
Telling my husband, “Yes!”
He calls the company and agrees to the job and hangs up.
But God has His way and fills my husband with an overwhelming dread until he calls them back and says,
“NO!”
The next week plays out about exactly the same
“Yes!”
“No!”
They call a third time.
“Yes!”
The final week my husband puts in writing his intent to leave and hands it to his boss.
God makes him feel so horrible that he humbles himself to ask for his job back.
“NO!”
If I truly sit down to pray, and push through all the excitement and dread TO PEACE I would have had the correct answer.
Thankfully God has the ability to really make us understand the trouble we are in. I have no idea what God did to make my husband know he had to say “NO!” after saying “yes.” But God did.
Again today, (a week later,) I woke with the temperature of -5 degrees. We are singing in the choir for church and need to be an hour earlier. When do they decide if the church is open. Fearing what the roads could be like, I text the choir director to find out the church is open. The roads are good and I an able to drive the speed limit.
Does some of this fear come with older ages?
Or is it just life?
Am I Taking my eyes Off Jesus?
Help me get my passion back Jesus, so I walk in LOVE with NO fear!