Seeing God When the Windshield is Dirty

Lucy Thompson here.

Life has been tough lately. Tough enough to need an extra pair of these:

Pic credit.

Seems like my (mostly) smooth driving through life has been hit by a series of boggy stretches of road and churned up byways that have left my windshield mud splattered and rearview mirrors smudged.

Times like this, sometimes God can be hard to see, if I'm being very honest. 

© Mg3141592 | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

And I don't know about you, but sometimes I don't loosen my white-knuckled grip of the steering wheel as early as I should. Cos, you know...pride. Thinking I can do this all by myself... More pride... Shame. Being overwhelmed.

Sometimes there are no answers. But there is God. Surprisingly, he is enough.

There's that saying  "Sometimes God calms the storm, sometimes He lets the storm rage and calms His child." (Source unknown). 

In those moments when the wheels are churning, demands are unmet, and the view through the windshield is blurred with gobs of mud (stuff life throws at us) I sense God nudging me. Saying "hey... Be still. Sit with me for a spell. Wait."

Wait.  

I don't do waiting very well. Anyone?? Even when trying to sleep I'm more like this:

Credit: Facebook :P

But God.

 He doesn't leave us in our mess. He doesn't leave us alone. He doesn't leave us. He will never leave me. Or you.

Want to know why? 

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him. John 3:16-18The Message (MSG)

 Because he loved. Because he gave. In spite of our messes and mishaps. In spite of our distraction by shiny things and squeaky toys. 

God loves you.
Know that.
Trust that. 

Take your gaze off the dirty windshield and look closer. Perhaps you'll see that God is sitting right next to you just waiting for your attention. :)

About Lucy:
Hi! My name is Lucy Thompson. I’m a stay-at-home mum to five precocious children and wife to the ultra-handy Dave by day and a snoop by night, stalking interesting characters through historical settings, and writing about their exploits. 

I enjoy meeting new people from all over the world and learning about the craft of writing. When I can be separated from my laptop, I’m a professional time-waster on Facebook (really!), a slave to the towering stack of books on my bedside table, or can be found hanging out with my five children. 

My home is in central Queensland, Australia where I do not ride a kangaroo to the shops, mainly because my children won’t fit

 Try my books: A Cowboy's Dare if you like full length historical romance. Or if time is shorter, Waltzing Matilda,  a novella in Barbour's Oct release.

DEVOTION: Bought at a Great Price ~ by Kathi Macias

But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions…what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me (2 Timothy 3:10-11, NKJV).

The Apostle Paul was no stranger to suffering, yet he was no whiner either. He patiently endured whatever hardships came his way as a result of his bold proclamation of faith in the risen Christ, knowing his Lord would keep him safe whatever happened.

Notice, however, that though Paul knew God would keep him safe, he didn’t expect Him to spare him from suffering. Paul understood that such things were part of the cost he must pay for serving the One whom the world rejected. Nothing much has changed in that regard, has it? Though we in many countries are free to worship God as we wish, others around the globe are not so blessed.

Jesus Himself set the example, didn’t He? Another Apostle, Thomas, wanted proof of that example. When he was told that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead, he didn’t ask to see Christ’s face or to hear His voice. He said he must touch His wounds, the scars that proved His suffering on our behalf, before he would believe. Graciously, Jesus accommodated him.

Our redemption was bought at a great price, so great we can scarcely begin to fathom it. The scars on the risen Christ’s body are testimony to that redemption and the unconditional love that sealed it.

Can we, as followers of Christ, expect any less? Even if we are not openly persecuted for our faith, there is always a price to pray, a part of self that needs to die daily so our risen Lord can live within us. There’s no room on the throne for two; only Jesus has earned the right to sit there. When we are called to any sort of suffering in our walk with Him, may we endure it humbly, knowing that the scars it produces will provide evidence of Christ’s love for others to see, that they too might believe and be saved.


Kathi Macias is a multi-award winning writer who has authored nearly 40 books and ghostwritten several others. 


A former newspaper columnist and string reporter, Kathi has taught creative and business writing in various venues and has been a guest on many radio and television programs. Kathi is a popular speaker at churches, women’s clubs and retreats, and writers’ conferences. 

She won the 2008 Member of the Year award from AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) and was the 2011 Author of the Year from BooksandAuthors.net. Kathi “Easy Writer” Macias lives in Homeland, CA with her husband.