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Ephesians 5:20 – Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)
I had been working at the computer all day, finishing up a writing assignment. My eyes were tired and dry, but I had an important evening appointment. Since I live in LA — Los Angeles, California, USA — there was only one way to get there: on the freeway (or the expressway, as they say back east).
Now, there are two things that freeway drivers can't abide: traffic jams and big trucks. Both slow you down, and no LA driver puts up easily with that.
But I had to get there, so I used some eyedrops and set out to brave the infamous Golden State Freeway 5. Halfway there, I realized that I'd forgotten to bring my eyedrops. Blinking and peering resolutely out of the top of my bifocals, I made it to my appointment. But then, I had to get home. My eyes continued painful and dry until just as I hit the onramp, when my vision went blurry.
In front of me was a large truck. As long as I stayed behind that truck, I could see to keep in my lane, if he didn't go too fast. And what should we encounter at that very moment but a traffic jam! All the way home, I drove slowly, staying behind one truck or another, keeping my car in line with its tail lights. When I finally turned safely onto my street, I breathed a sigh of relief and a prayer: "Lord, I have never said this before and probably never will again, but thank You for traffic jams and big trucks!"
Most of us are familiar with the many verses that tell us to give thanks, but we're not sure that God really means it. Always giving thanks for everything? Really? Even amid things that bring us pain and frustration? Yes. God wants us to be thankful through trials, big and small, to teach us patience, to stop us grumbling, and even to keep us safe on the freeway. When we give thanks, we show how much we trust Him.
So, keep in mind today that God may be using the very circumstances that annoy you to do you good. And give thanks!
Prayer: Dear Lord, we give thinks for the things that frustrate us, for the circumstances that slow us down, and for the people who try our patience. We thank You for the growth and the good that You will bring from our trials if we do not lose heart. In the name of Jesus, we thankfully pray. Amen.
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Thanks for the thoughts
Great lesson Sylvia! Blessings.
Been there done that on all accounts. Encouraging words Sylvia.
Sylvia – another instance of God taking care of you – by using things that normally annoy you!! Thanks for sharing. Keep writing!
Good morning Sylvia,
Thank you for your inspirational story “Traffic Jams And Big Trucks”.
Thank you Sylvia. Thank God for His guidance in getting you home safely, without any accidents.
Well done. Please write again. I have travelled on that freeway when our son lived in L.A.
You are lucky to be alive.
Thanks for sharing this experience and the lesson drawn from it. Like you, I’ve issues that sometimes I don’t appreciate, but God has used for good. Thanks again and Blessings.
Hi Sylvia,
Giving thanks in times of trial is one those things that is easy to say but difficult to do. Thank you for your thoughts on the subject.
Blessings.
Thank you so much Sylvia. I was feeling exactly the same way you described and your words help to confirm that indeed God can use our trials and frustrations to teach us patience and tolerance and show us the way. Thank you so much for sharing.
Dear Sylvia,
Thanks for this very appropriate meditation. It is a helpful insight to show that we can respond to an annoying or even a shattering situation that brings grief to see it as something that may teach us something or in the grand scheme of things be of benefit.
Dear Sylvia,
Thanks for the true-to-God and true-to-life devotional. And I pray that you will remember your eye drops and whatever else you need for good vision.
And I pray that God will keep you safe by whatever means he chooses, albeit traffic components like big trucks and road blocks.
Keep writing.
Hey Silvia, I know those traffic jams, maybe not as well as you, but I’ve been on I15 and 91 freeways at dusk. Sometimes it is because I have to meet another person and those traffic jams actually give me times of prayer and thoughtfulness before I arrive at my situation. Thanks for sharing,
(CA, USA)
Great story.
I have only one eye, the other has a cataract. The night was half rain, half snow, the road was under major reconstruction.
I prayed and followed other tail lights all the way home. What a relief.
Cataract corrected, things are clearer and much brighter now.
I often pray while traveling, to keep me and family and friends safe too.
Wonderful truth. Simple in telling, but requiring so much in the doing!! Patience, understanding, surrender – and really, if we just give thanks in the midst of the “trucks and traffic jams” of life, the tension slips away and joy breaks through. If only I could remember this in the midst of it all!! Beautiful analogy! Thank you so much. Your story is so much easier to swallow than stern advice or reprimand. I’m so grateful to God for the way He brings things to mind and into focus!!! God bless.