Not so much by their bad driving —though it was truly bad— but more by their unpredictability. I had no idea what they would do next. And yet, I had to enter that fray at least twice every working day.
When I voiced my concern to a friend at church, he touched my arm and said, gently, “I can help.” He shared with me an essential bit of wisdom that, in time, gave me some much needed confidence. Soon, I was driving all over the Boston area without undue fear (a little fear was still good).
What he shared was this: in the mind of every Boston driver is one thought: “Can ‘I’ make it?”
Suddenly, it all made a kind of crazy sense. What I soon learned to do was watch, not the cars, but the faces of those nearby drivers. Directional signals? Forget it. Lane location? Meaningless. Where were they looking? That told me everything I needed to know.
I learned (1) those Boston drivers were not going to change (no matter how much I wanted them to change, and no matter how much they needed to change), and (2) I learned a lesson about people and imparted wisdom. Sometimes the wisdom is for them ... and sometimes the wisdom is for me.
With regard to Boston drivers, I was the one who must change, and my friend’s wisdom helped me do it.
It’s an important lesson to keep in mind while reading this week’s scriptures (all related to wisdom). It is easy to conclude that the wisdom of the scriptures is for them ... that is, someone other than me.
Well, of course, not me. None of us wants to think of ourselves as unwise. And yet ... do you ever read a passage and immediately think of someone who would benefit from adopting that code or mode of conduct? Someone who is not you? Personally, I’m still working on this one. I used to do it all the time.
I have realized that all of this week's scriptures are about me, for me ... not them. So, I’ve been re-reading the passages with me in mind ... not someone else.
My takeaway: heed Wisdom's call, and choose to accept the instruction that leads to life.
_________________________
PHOTO CREDIT (and an article explaining why Boston traffic is SO BAD):
https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2017/04/30/boston-traffic/
The Boston Driver’s Handbook is a hilarious read (and essential should you ever want to drive in Boston). See it here: https://www.amazon.com/Boston-Drivers-Handbook-Streets-Almost/dp/0306813262/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536798162&sr=8-1&keywords=the+boston+drivers+handbook
_________________________
Join us in the function room at Our Breakfast Place or on Zoom** Friday morning for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. As usual, we gather at 8:00 for an hour-ish of visiting, reading scripture, praying, and discussing.
Bring your own breakfast beverage to Zoom … but, be careful; still lots of laughing.
Blessings!
Steve
Proverbs 1:20-33
Psalm 19
Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 116:1-9
James 3:1-12
Mark 8:27-38
No comments:
Post a Comment