Do you sometimes offer rides to people, either because they are going the same place you are going, or because they need to get somewhere and you are willing to go out of your way to help them get there?
Sometimes, as you help someone out, they find active ways to change your ‘settings’. Perhaps they change the air vents or window positions. Perhaps they adjust the temperature or seat position or help you reorganize your cup holder and storage areas.
As you travel they may seek to assist you by telling you when your blinker should be on, and when you are going too fast or two slow, or where you should turn.
There are appropriate times to make each of these adjustments, and provide each of these inputs. There are also other times when that help is not necessary, but the passenger is being fidgety. Some passengers are defined by the regular, recurring actions listed above, whether or not there is an apparent need.
Is your passenger making changes because of a physical need, or as a way to assert their will? Do they desire to clearly exhibit their power or authority? Or perhaps they are just not good at sitting still and enjoying the trip.
When that passenger is with you, are you traveling a common route, well-known to you, that has been tried and tested as the most efficient? Are you taking a particular course because you know of a construction zone on another more common route, or for an errand that needs to be run on the way, or a site worth seeing that you will intend to point out as you pass by?
As the driver, how do you feel when these situations arise? Perhaps you are relieved that the passenger is making themselves at home. Perhaps you are having an emotional response to the passengers power play. Perhaps you are witnessing behaviors that suggest deeper issues in the life of your passenger.
Of course your passenger could ask you if you would like help with the route before they start trying to direct your course. They could ask if it is okay with you if they change the temperature settings before they do it. But we are humans. Sometimes our urges to make changes overwhelm our humanity, and we do things that impact others, such as the driver who is helping us out.
This is the way that I am with God, sometimes (maybe even more frequently). He directs my steps. He is the giver of all good gifts. He intends to take me places for my own good. He provides all the resources that I have. He animates my every action, my very ability to breathe, think and feel.
For my part, I sit in the passenger seat and make myself comfortable. I tell God which route we should take, when he should turn on his blinkers, and when things are moving too fast or too slow. I struggle to sit still and appreciate what he is doing for my sake.
With God, I am the fidgety passenger that few drivers would appreciate.
Are you?
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