Tuesday, February 28, 2012 - When Life Gets Foggy

When Life Gets Foggy

I was driving to work this morning and it was uncharacteristically foggy. I don’t mean a little fog, like what you see over a pond or a lake in the morning. I’m talking minimal-visibility-can-barely-see-the-brake-lights-10-feet-in-front-of-you foggy.

I wasn’t running late, but I had left my place in just enough time to not get stopped by too many lights or drive behind someone slow Granny and still be punctual in my arrival.

It’s not that I put that much thought into it. I was actually only able to do this because of my programmable coffee maker that I set last night and the fact that my car didn’t have to defrost because of mild temperatures this morning. Otherwise, I would have definitely been late. I digress.

What I didn’t expect as I left at my distinctly calculated time, though, was the immense fog that met me even as I left my parking space and turned to exit my complex. Since I live in a different city than my morning job, I thought surely the more I travel the fog will dissipate. Nope. The longer I drove, the thicker it got. The visibility continued to decrease until I was the slow Granny squinting my eyes to see the vehicles ahead of and around me.

All of a sudden, I realized how terrifying that experience could have been. I couldn’t see anything. What if there was an accident in front of me? I probably would have just added to the pile. What if a deer darted in front of my car? What if, by some strange occurrence, the road on which I was traveling suddenly ended, or was blocked or barricaded?

I was comfortable in this fog because I was familiar with the route. Even though I couldn’t see the street signs, I knew when to slow down and where to turn. I was driving in faith that everything was as it should be so I wasn’t concerned with not being able to see far ahead.

But, what happens when life becomes foggy? I’d like to say that I have that same faith. I’d like to say that I am comfortable in what God has for me whether my visibility of the future is clear or too thick to see what is right in front of me. I’d like to say those things, but that wouldn’t be entirely truthful.

The truth is, when life gets foggy, I go crazy. I straight up freak out. When things don’t go as planned at work or my roommate moves out unexpectedly or a parent becomes ill or I realize that some relationships with family that I’ve been working for years to develop are just never going to happen…when these things creep into my life — when life gets foggy — I freak out. I’m just so eternally grateful to serve such a loving Father who allows me to freak out, to experience those emotions and waits with loving arms for me to crawl in, rest in, and lay my burdens at His feet.

I know that I can never repay Him for the sacrifices He’s made or the blessings that He bestows upon me, but oh, how I could show my appreciation by just trusting Him.

To trust the Lord with my life as I trusted Harris Boulevard this morning; to [recognize when to slow down] and where to turn based on prayer, discernment and living in the center of His will; to become comfortable in the fog, knowing that whether visibility is low or I can clearly see my path, He is in control and the route is more than familiar to Him, these are my prayers for today.

{Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see.}

Hebrews 11:1, NIV