Daily Devotional for Friday February 19, 2010

If You Do Not Have to Drive Tonight Please Don't

(Psalms 37:32)

If you do not have to drive tonight, please don't! One of the things most of us do each day is drive a car. In our society, it is the way we get around to do all the things we have to do each day. Rarely do we think twice about driving. It is just part of our life and something we do almost instinctively. The Bible tells us that the enemy comes to "kill, steal, and destroy". For those who have accepted Christ as their Savior, the enemy can't have your soul, but he can destroy your life and ability to serve God. He can also steal your peace and joy. He is also able to lay traps to kill you.

Let me say here that the Bible clearly teaches that nothing..nothing..nothing.. happens to us apart from God allowing it to happen. Read the first chapters of Job and you will see clearly that it is God who is in total control. I am convinced from my years in ministry and from the Word of God, that there is no disease...no accident...not even a bullet that can take the life of one of God's children until that person's work here on earth is finished. It is God who will make that determination. Having said that, we are still responsible to be alert and to use the common sense the Lord gave us in our daily lives. That includes driving.

Driving our cars is such an instinctive thing we do, I doubt we ever really focus on the actual dangers we face when we get behind the wheel. First of all, seatbelts are a safety mechanism that have been proven to save lives. I don't care if you are going across the country, or across the block..WEAR YOUR SEATBELTS!!!

Also, remember why you are driving. It is to get you from point A to point B. It is not to listen to the radio, it is not to put on make-up, it is not to eat and drink, and it is not to talk on the phone, NOT TO SEND TEXT MESSAGES! There is nothing wrong with listening to the radio or tape deck; however set it up before you actually start driving. Do your make-up at home, not in the car. Eat at home or at your destination, not in the car. Take a break from the phone in the car. SEND YOUR TEXT BEFORE YOU START DRIVING OR WAIT UNTIL YOU STOP!

Why do I say this? Simple. Any of these activities while driving takes away from your ability to fully concentrate on driving your car, and takes away from your ability to focus on what is happening around you. Even if you are the best driver in the world, the problem is that there are others on the road who may not be. Never forget. Every time you get in your car, you are putting your life in the hands of those other drivers. You are trusting them to drive safely and obey the rules. In all honesty, you often put more faith in strangers you have never met, than you do in God.

I love you, and care for you so much. This Devotional is not meant to scare you or to make you afraid to drive your car. Quite the opposite. It is intended to make you aware of one of the potential dangers you face each day, and to realize how important it is for you to be alert and focused every time you are driving. God has a wonderful plan for your life. We have a very real out there that would love to hurt us. That is why we can never take things for granted and must always remember that God is our protector and shield.

I will be praying for you today that as you drive, the Lord will be with you to guide you and protect you. We cannot always avoid accidents in life, and we often have no good answers why those things happen. Our responsibility, though, is to do our best not to be the cause of an accident by being careless or not paying attention. Driving is an important part of our life and can also be very dangerous. Concentrating and being fully aware of the responsibility we have each time we drive a car is of utmost importance to protecting your safety, as well as the safety of the other drivers you encounter on the road.

So many things we do in this life we take for granted and get so used to, we don't even think about it. I pray that you will stay focused each day in all of the things you do. Especially remember how dangerous driving can be, and that it requires all of your attention. The way to live in victory each day is to follow Him and use the intelligence God blessed us with.

In His love and service, Your friend and brother in Christ, Bill Keller