Driveway Moments

driveway

I may not have a Mini Cooper, but my car can serve as a mini church.

On National Public Radio (NPR), they talk about “driveway moments”:

What is a driveway moment? Maybe it’s happened to you as it has to countless others…you’re driving home, listening to a story on NPR. Suddenly, you find yourself in your driveway (or parking space or parking garage). Rather than turn the radio off, you stay in your car to hear the piece to the end.

Listeners are continually recounting to NPR the stories that kept them in their driveways listening.

The idea of driveway moments got me thinking: What are some other driveway moments? I know that in my childhood before a long vacation, my father would always say a prayer before we left the driveway. And I remember many a time after a long ride home or a treacherous trip, that I have stayed in the car a little longer to just take a deep breath and say thank you to God for keeping me safe.

Many of my friends with kids say that some of the best conversations they have with their children is in the car on the way to or from school or practice and that sometimes those conversations linger when the car in the driveway.

Along somewhat the same lines, my sister-in-law once told me that when she is stuck in the car at a railroad stop, she uses the extra time to say a prayer for each member of her family until the train passes.

We spend so much of our lives in the car these days, that it is no wonder that more and more special moments occur there. And as Christians, it is not surprising that the number of encounters with Christ in cars has increased. Christ comes to wherever we are, and we need to be ready to respond to him when the opportunity to speak with him or meditate on his Word and will presents itself. We cannot reserve prayer and praise and Bible reading to  one hour a week in church or our bedtime or our dinner table.

We are more than ever a mobile society and God is mobile with us. So take advantage of that. We don’t need a mobile phone or an app either. All we need are the words, “Dear God … ” and the Spirit will steer us the rest of the way.

 

2 replies on “Driveway Moments”

  1. Sally Beck says:

    Good one, Mark!

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