The Ride of Your Life

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”—Philippians 1:6.

Some mornings on the way to work, there’s someone with a 5-speed on your bumper, itching for a chance to blow by you once there’s an open stretch of highway.  And then there's you and the three hybrid car drivers in front of you, who for some reason have no itch at all and are barely reaching the speed limit.  You desperately wish you were that other guy with the zippy 5-speed Focus sport edition, enjoying the ride.

Because you love those mornings. The words in the Word seem to zoom off the page straight into your heart, and you are jolted with wonder, amazement, and insight. But other days, you feel like you're hugging the breakdown lane: the words move by slowly without a sound—or worse, stare right back at you.

“God, what have I done I wrong? And where are You, anyway?”

Probably nothing. And still here.

There are a million reasons why our passion for God on some days is not as zippy, white-hot as we’d like. Go no further than everyday distractions, discouragements, and a mental to-do list that often seems overwhelming.

You just…can’t…Focus.

It’s good to know that God is not puzzled or freaked out by any of it. In fact, He has a great response for all our days, whether 5-speed or stuck in traffic:

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23)

Unswervingly may not qualify for most dictionaries, but to break it down, to swerve means “to turn aside suddenly from a straight course.” So, to un-swerve would simply mean:

Stay steady.

Look straight ahead.

Hold on tight to what you know is True.

Beware of "I've got this" cruise control.

Relax, trust the Road Map, and keep going.

To live unswervingly is learning to rest in the simple fact that the ups and downs of life are God’s way of building and refining the character of Christ in us—that in all things, He's doing a "good work within" to make us better reflectors when we get out onto the road of a new day.

“Gospel-centered discipleship is not about how we perform, but who we are—imperfect people, clinging to a perfect Christ, being perfected by the Spirit.”—Jonathan Dodson, “Christ-Centered Discipleship”