Skip to main content

A First Ride

There is no fear in love, 
but perfect love casts out fear
1 John 4:18

It all begins with God’s love. 

I began a "first ride" ministry with the youth in  my church. When I learned of a youth working toward a driver's license, I told them I would consider it an honor to be the first person they would take for a ride. They could go wherever they chose, but I suggested having lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. I joked with them saying I had confidence in their driving, but if they killed me I would never talk to them again. 

Each "first ride" was a little different. I probably would have driven at a different speed or used the brake pedal sooner or taken a curve differently. But this was not about driving skills.

It's all about showing God's love through trust and respect.

God’s love is not an abstract concept. God sent Jesus on earth to preach, teach and heal. Jesus touched the untouchable and welcomed the rejected. Jesus demonstrated God's love in action without boundaries. We don’t have to reach out to God or meet some sort of standard or worthiness in order to be loved. 

Sometimes we can get stuck in life not knowing which way to go or what to do next. We may come across seemingly impossible boundaries or struggling to move forward from heartbreaking events. 

When these times happen, I assure you, God's love is with you in what may feel like a "first ride". I know. I've been there.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grantchester's Warning

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, the owner would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (from Luke 12:32-40 ) I regularly watch Grantchester; a murder mystery set in 1950s England. The main characters are a local detective and an Anglican priest who, as a team, solve mysteries set in the town. Two aspects of Grantchester impress me. First, the simplicity of the 1950’s police communications done by a landline phone and not cell phone. Second, the simplicity of daily life with little television and fewer possessions allowing the characters to focus on their vocation of detective and priest. This simplicity is more than a nostalgic return to the “good old days”. Instead, it’s a Shaker type of simplicity where austerity allows freedom from distractions to focus on worship and community. Today’s distraction-filled world has seemingly countless activ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Walking with God

Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. (from Ps.103:1-8 ) Thomas Merton, American Trappist monk, writer and theologian, once asked himself a question he immediately answered:   How does an apple ripen? The apple, by simply being in the sun, fulfills its purpose of ripening, The apple doesn't try to ripen faster, it simply allows the sun to do its work.   There is nothing it can do to ripen itself. It can’t do workouts, tighten its muscles and then suddenly be a red, ripened, juicy apple in the morning. The apple just hangs on the branch in the sun, naturally ripening, where it receives its daily nourishment. This is the basic plan for how Christians ripen in their relationship to God. The difference is that Christians don’t naturally ripen in their relationship to God, we have to place themselves where we can be nourished. The beginning place of nourishment I find most helpful is the Guide to Prayer For All Who Walk With God. The daily walk in the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Jesus, Deliverance, and Demons

"Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind." (from Luke 8:26-39 ) Astrid is a streaming program I often watch. The plot is a basic cops and robbers action until the criminal is caught. The uniqueness of the program is Astrid, who is on the Autism spectrum, is brilliant at solving puzzles including connecting clues to solve the crime. Watching this program has given me a more profound insight to people living with this condition and their acceptance in society. My first-hand experience with children on the Spectrum was driving a Special Needs school bus for 6 years. With this experience, I can imagine the life the possessed man was experiencing, especially living among the tombs, bound with chains and shackles, having to live in the wilds. It was no wonder he cried for mercy. Jesus, with his power and mercy, cast the demons out and even...
Post a Comment
Read more