can't always see what's not there.....

For the first time in over five years since moving to Franklin, I was "late" to work because of traffic. Well, not really late, because I'm always here early, but late for me.

I usually leave home around 6:15 every morning, and I'm usually in my office by 6:40. (There's NEVER any traffic problems that time of the morning between Franklin and Nashville. NEVER!) Since I've been carpooling with another guy in the neighborhood, I've been leaving around 6:10, and this morning was no exception. We were almost 2/3 of the way to work when I started seeing brake lights, so I started slowing down. (The bride would have started applying her brakes before she saw other brake lights; she's psychic that way. The only way I know to put on my brakes when she's in the car is when I hear her gasping for air, like she's about to go scuba diving without an air tank.) Before I knew it, we had a 4-lane parking lot at 6:30 AM on I-65 north. It took between 15 and 20 minutes to travel the next 3 miles. But we never saw a wreck. Never.

I don't like to see people hurt or hurting. I cringe whenever I come upon a wreck that's just happened and see how bad the car looks. But to see no skid marks or anything after going 5 mph for 20 minutes? Made us wonder why there was such a backup.

I needed to be in at my regular time to get some things finished before 7:30, so being "late" caused me to be a little frazzled. Then it hit me. For the past few mornings, I kept having a verse pop up in my head over and over. Maybe this is a stretch, but thinking about this verse and how it can relate to what happened to me this morning was soothing:

Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (NIV)

Or, as The Message translation says - The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see.

Ever feel like you're losing your handle on things you can't see? I like to feel that I'm in control over myself and situations surrounding me, from work to personal life. But the truth of the matter is that I'm not. That's where faith comes in. Sometimes I feel like I'm making progress in this area, other times it's like I'm losing ground. I just have to keep reminding myself that life's not a sprint, no matter how much I try to make it into one. I have to remember to pace myself.....