We’re a man down. My family, that is. Bubba went on to his eternal resting place. He passed into the great beyond last October, but it took until January before my husband was willing to let go. Men in blue shirts and brown belts collected the body and took it to be buried. Or, as near to buried as a twenty-five year old southern gentleman can be. When that southern gentleman is made of metal and held together by rust and engine oil so old and dirty it’s turned gummy.
Yep. We’re a man down. It’s all up to Big Red, now. Big Red, with the droopy headlights, saggy tires, one door that doesn’t work, and one door that only works part-time. He’s responsible for getting my husband to and from work each day, my son to piano each week, and us as a family to church twice on Sundays. Big Red is younger than Bubba but has been around the block a few more times. He looks like a first-time parent, but he drives like a great-grandma without her glasses. He kind of sounds like one, too. The great-grandma, that is.
So how does this lead me to prayer?
I would have thought it was obvious…
Okay, not really.
On Tuesday mornings I have the pleasure of rising before the rooster is even thinking of crowing. I drive my husband to work, drop him off, and bring Big Red back home with me so that I can take my son to piano later in the day.
I’ve always been a sunrise gal. There’s something special about the sunrise. It reminds me of God, his mercies, and the beauty of each new day. Alas, I don’t get to see the sunrise on Tuesdays. I’m back home before it – and that lazy rooster – are doing much of anything. And home is buried behind a bunch of trees and houses taller and more stately than ours. So no sunrise for me. Unless I watch it online, and let’s face it – calling that thing on my computer screen a sunrise is like calling a bag of sour cream and onion potato chips a baked potato with the works.
Have you caught on to how prayer fits in yet?
Now dawdling. Catch up with me now. Of course, my poor brain is addled with sleep deprivation, so it may be my fault if you don’t yet know where I’m going with this. Don’t ever try to have a serious conversation with me on Tuesday. Forming complete sentences is beyond me, and the fragments I do come up with are far from artistic.
But, I do have one thing going for me. On the drive home – after I’ve dropped my husband off – I get to pray. Sure, I can pray at other times. There’s something special, though, about that quiet time with just me, Big Red, and the hundreds of other unbalanced morning motorists. I turn the radio off, keep my eyes wide open, slip into defensive-driver mode, and talk to God.
The morning commute is twenty minutes in average traffic. I, however, have always been above average, so I usually manage to get in a good twenty-five minutes of one-on-one time with my Creator. Yes. It’s because I am more than passingly acquainted with every single red light between the work-site and our home.
But I love it.
I highly encourage the practice (of prayer, not sitting at red lights). Although, if you can find a way to pray without racing the rooster to the finish line, more power to you! ♥
Where do you carve out quality time to talk with God?
Heather Gray loves coffee, God, her family, and laughter – not necessarily in that order! She writes approachable characters who, through the highs and lows of life, find a way to love God, embrace each day, and laugh out loud right along with her. And, yeah, her books almost always have someone who's a coffee addict. Some things just can't be helped. Despite their different lives and situations, Heather’s characters have something in common. They're all flawed...but loved anyway.
I really enjoyed this post. I find myself praying while driving as well.
Hi Angela! Thank you for stopping by! I have to admit, I’m a much better driving prayer warrior during the dark than I am in daylight. Once the sun’s up, I find myself surrounded by far too many distractions. And since the days are getting longer, I’m soon going to have to tell my husband he’s going to work an hour early on Tuesdays…just so I can have my quiet DARK prayer time on the drive home… ;)
Thank you for sharing this great post, Heather! My prayer time is during the quiet of the late night or early morning. I am so very thankful that we can talk to God at any time and anywhere!
Hi Britney! I’m so glad you stopped by today! I used to be a late-night prayer. I’d do my Bible study then, too, but some life and schedule changes turned my personal clock upside down, and now I find that my brain shuts off in late evening, and coherent conversation with anyone – God included – becomes obsolete after that point. So I stick to my early mornings now. It was a hard adjustment, but since the alternative was not spending time with God at all, it was a no-brianer. :) Here’s to many early mornings and late nights spent with the God of he heavens and the earth!
Inspiring. Thank you. :)
Thank you for stopping by today Dagmar! I hope you have a blessed day!
My daily prayer/fellowship time with God is in the morning when I have my coffee & read my daily scripture. It’s usually just after I get home from taking my son to school & my husband has already gone off to work. I have a hard time functioning without this routine. I find I am more ready to face my day once I’ve had my time with God. The other times I love it is when I am on an extended drive. My sister-in-law lives about a 4 hour drive away, when I go to visit I spend that time listening to the local Christian station or my many CD’s. I crank up the volume & sing along…I can really feel His presence with me. It makes the drive much faster and more enjoyable! And I love sitting at those long red lights because it doesn’t bother me when I’m in His presence.
I know I need to be more disciplined in quiet time with the Lord & devoted more to prayer. There are so many distractions in life, sometimes I get so bogged down in all that. I really want to carve more time out for just Him. I just know for me worship music draws me in so much closer & I feel more of an intimate bond. It’s like the songs will wash over me & speak to my heart…it’s in those moments that I hear His voice so clearly. Such a blessed time of fellowship!
Music is a beautiful way to connect with God! I can’t help but think the Psalmists knew that when they wrote the psalms. Sometimes music speaks to our soul in a way nothing else can. I love that, and I love that God never grows weary of pursuing that intimate relationship with us.