Road Rage

Have you ever been in the vehicle with someone who completely lost their head over someone else’s mistake on the road? A.K.A. Road Rage. It can be comical, frightening or down-right embarrassing. Let’s put ourselves in that driver’s shoes for a minute. Obviously if that other driver put people’s lives at risk, there is reason to be concerned and react without hesitation. Sometimes, it’s a lack of convenience on your part if you’re running behind or your patience left long before your lunch break on this very day.

You would blame the other person for your actions, correct? “If they hadn’t.… then I wouldn’t have…”.

I am guilty of convincing myself that my sin is justified if someone else’s actions brought me to it.

Yes? Anyone with me here?

“If my children hadn’t been so defiant today, I wouldn’t have been so hateful.”

“If my husband hadn’t ‘expected’ me to do that and would have rather appreciated it, then I wouldn’t have been so bitter about doing it.”

Ouch.

Let’s take a look at Genesis when Adam and Eve. We will skip right to the part where they have eaten the apple. They are naked and shamefully hiding out in the garden as they heard God’s voice call out and question Adam as to what he has done. (Genesis 3:9-11)

Genesis 3:12 reads, Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”

Maybe more like, “Had You not placed this sinful woman in my life, I would not have sinned against You.”

How easy it was to redirect his sin back to the woman and God, right?

Genesis 3:13 goes on to say, And the Lord said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Again, “Had it not been for the serpent’s deceiving ways, I would not have sinned.”

I encourage you to read through this story yourself and allow it to penetrate your mind and heart from this perspective.

When God chooses to deal with my sin, I don’t want to run and hide any longer. Nor do I want to place blame in the hands of anyone else rather than deal with my own shortcomings at face value.

Believing His works in us are wonderful when we don’t feel wonderful and then working on becoming the best versions of ourselves while working at not blaming others for our shortfalls is tough. However, I firmly believe getting intentional in all 3 of these areas can actually create a wife/mother/friend that your people are hungry for to shine the brightest light in such a dark world.

This road of life is guaranteed to have potholes and unexpected delays. Are we going to carry on in road rage or cling to our Redeemer and allow ourselves to grow as individuals through all life’s traffic jams?

Are we going to blame others when our engines blow or are we going to get intentional on proper maintenance of our own vehicles in life such as our hearts and minds?

It’s certainly territory worth exploring, friend. As I’m preaching to the choir, I hope it resonates in your heart as well. Much love, friend.