Road Trips

I love road trips. Whether it's a vacation or driving to see family, it’s a nice change of pace. When I’m driving, I love the time to simply think, listen to a podcast, or enjoy some music. Playing games and chatting with the family is also a blast. But when I’m not driving, there is only one thing I like to do. 

Sleep! 

This creates a little friction as my wife only wants to drive if I will talk with her and keep her awake. What I like about sleeping on road trips is the time portal it puts you into. You close your eyes, and then the next thing you know, you are at your destination! 

The disciples were on a road trip once, though it was in a boat on the Sea of Galilee. The waters were getting rough, and Jesus was not in any passenger seat. Then the disciples saw him approaching the boat, walking on water. He told them not to be afraid and jumped in the boat with them. In the book of John, he writes that once Jesus climbed in, the boat immediately reached the shore across the lake.

Wow! How many times have you been on a long road trip and wished the same? Wouldn’t it be great to pick up Jesus walking along the highway, and once He closed the door, your car was at its destination!

I think this story is recorded for us for many reasons. So often, we go on journeys in our lives, short and long, and forget to invite Jesus to go with us. Especially when the going gets rough, and the waves begin to crash, we tend to lean on things of this world. But when we bring Jesus into our troubles, in His perfect timing, we reach the correct destination much more quickly.

Inviting Jesus into our journeys requires a relationship with Him. If we only talk to him when we are in crisis, our relationship is shaky, not on solid ground. But spending time with Him on a regular basis, in the good times and the bad, builds a solid foundation. When this closeness exists, Jesus is no longer a hitchhiker but a constant passenger. 

And when I hand over driving duties to Him, maybe then I can get some sleep!