The Driver's Seat

Monday, January 10, 2022
Listen to this devotional:
Listen while you read: "Hail The Day That Sees Him Rise"1 (Lyrics)

Jonah 1:1-3a – The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me." But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. (NIV)

Recently, one of my dogs, Denver, had a veterinarian appointment. Normally, he rides in the truck bed under the canopy. But on this day, he was going to have to ride in the passenger front seat, something that he had never done before.

On the two-hour trip to Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada, and back, he did great. He enjoyed looking out the window or curling up on the seat for a nap.

However, my troubles began after his appointment when I had various stores to visit. Every time I came back to the truck, Denver would be in the driver's seat — not an unusual thing for a dog to do, as most of them love to take over that seat once their owner has vacated. The problem was that Denver was not willing to give my seat back to me when I wanted to get into the truck. No amount of encouragement moved him one inch toward the passenger seat.

Denver is a big guy, approximately ninety pounds, so pushing him out of the way just wasn't working. I went around to the passenger side, opened the door, and convinced him to move onto his own seat. Great! I thought, until I walked back around to the driver's side and found him once again sitting in my seat.

Running around the truck from one side to the other went on for longer than I would have liked, before he finally got the message and stayed put. Seeing as I had four or five shops that I had to run into, and this scenario was repeated at each one, I was, to say the least, a little annoyed with him by the time the trip was over.

Looking back upon the experience, however, I can't help but laugh, especially when I consider that my two granddaughters, sitting in the back seat, found the whole thing hysterically funny and entertaining.

Likewise, I wonder if God looks down and finds us hysterically funny and entertaining, every time when we, His people, jump into the driver's seat of our lives, just as Jonah did. Examples are when we are waiting for an answer to prayer and it is simply not happening, or when we don't like the way things are going.

Yet, when we take the driver's seat, things usually don't end up being very funny or entertaining for us. Jonah ended up being swallowed by the big fish that God had prepared for him, before he was willing to concede the driver's seat of his life back to God.

If only he had stayed out of the driver's seat and allowed God to get him to the right destination in the first place, so much pain and so many problems could have been avoided.

How about you? Who's in the driver's seat of your life today? You or God?

Prayer: Father God, help us to allow You to be in the driver's seat of our lives, today and every day, so that we might end up, as quickly and pleasantly as possible, at the destination that You have planned for us, the one which You know is best for us and Your kingdom. In Christ's name, we pray. Amen.

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About the author:

Lynne Phipps <lynnephippsatlin@gmail.com>
Tawatinaw, Alberta, Canada

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1 Comment

  • PresbyCan Feedback says:

    Thank you.


    Thanks, Lynne. This is a great illustration of a good truth.


    Oh Lynne, you do know how to hit the proverbial nail on its head! Thanks for sharing. Blessings.


    A good laugh this morning while also getting an important reminder, Lynne. Thanks and blessings to you and your family!


    Hilarious, but a great lesson as I go through the valley of cancer treatment with my son!
    Thanks Lynne!


    Lynne, it is a treasure in my day to share time with you and your considerable crew of characters. Bringing God’s word alive for us is such a blessing.


    Hello and thank you for a lovely chuckle and spiritual object lesson.
    It’s the best of both!
    God bless your day!


    Dear Lynne
    How enjoyable to have a good laugh while reading your devotional! As always, a good, practical application, too. Many thanks.


    Lynne, I like the way you see God’s messages in so many activities. I cannot know how you do it, but it is encouraging to me and hopefully many others.
    God bless you.


    Hi Lynne,
    I am so sorry that I was not in the back seat with your granddaughters to enjoy your trip to Whitehorse with Denver. Thank you for sharing the story and the analogy about the “driver’s seat.”


    Thanks, Lynn! What a funny but very true devotional. Yesterday I had a similar experience that reminded me to stay out of the driver’s seat and trust God. I hope you keep writing. God bless you and your family.
    With thanks.


    Thanks for your wonderful devotion. Perhaps we should ask ourselves that question each morning before we go too far into our day, ‘who is in my driver’s seat, me or the Lord?’ I am sure the answer would be a good indication of how our day will go?
    Blessings to you on this day.


    Greetings Lynne,
    I always enjoy reading about the events you have with your grandkids and pets. You do such a beautiful job of co-ordinating the happenings with the ways our loving Lord is available to us and to guide us in our life’s situations.
    Blessings for these special and very thoughtful writings you do.


    Lynne, God bless you. In these difficult times we live in, your devotional with its humour hit me right between the eyes and straight to the heart. It was a powerful message for me and showed me God’s sense of humour through you.
    Blessings to you and your family,
    (Québec)


    Hi Lynne,
    As I usually do, I loved your story. It gave me a real laugh seeing the scenario in my mind. This week as I wait for results of my son’s test results for Covid, I realize that I needed your devotional. I have been praying but needed to give God the driver’s seat. It has made me much calmer. Thank you for your timely message. Take care and God bless you.


    As always!! Thank you, Lynne. I think I just offended someone who is very much in the driver’s seat in all aspects of her life, by trying to take her seat for myself!! Mainly looking for some clarification, my questions came out as criticism, as did her own responses. How sad when we are so inept at communicating. Please pray for us, that our relationship will not be impacted negatively by my irritation. God bless.


    Good morning, Lynne, my special cross the border friend who shares such great messages. Today’s is so fitting, and I shared it with my daughter. We are involved in a Guide Dog for the Blind Club program, and we have another dog in home training. We take them everywhere. One of our dogs sits up in a choir loft with his permanent Mom who was born blind. Yes, we can’t help but love them, but knowing they are saving a joyful life, we are ready to let them go. Keep your stories coming, and today’s I’m loving to share. God bless you greatly!!!


    Hi Lynne,
    Thanks so much for this priceless devotion. I love the humour. I have an inkling of the distance you and Denver travelled.
    I’ll share this: When I was doing Chaplaincy (CPE) training, I was so worried about all the patients that were on my unit. I dreamed that I was in an airplane (as the pilot) and the tail of the plane was on fire. I awoke with the crystal-clear knowledge that I was not the pilot. My job was more like the “steward” – to ensure passenger comfort. The next day I was better able to pray that God would help me to do my best – and that I would leave the piloting to him.


    Good morning Lynne,
    I love the way you make a great point concerning our faith journey with a humourous story from your experience. The picture of God looking down laughing at us is a good one and hopefully will help us to remember to stay out of the driver’s seat. Your two examples of when we want to hop into it are right on.
    Having to drive 2 hours for a vet appointment is also a wake-up call for many of us who live in the city.
    As I join in the prayer for today, hopefully I will remember to stay out of the driver’s seat and follow God’s will with the help of the Holy Spirit. May we all remember that God wants the best for each and every one of us. Best wishes and many blessings as you travel your unique path.


    This is SO great, Lynn. ‘Get Out Of The Driver’s Seat!’ is a slogan I use a lot. You have helped many people today and also made them smile.

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