When I returned later; I saw no car safely parked in my driveway. Suddenly, as one reawakened from slumber, I quickly looked up and down our street, surveying the neighborhood for any evidence of my 1970 green Chrysler. I had purchased it new on a very good deal from a nephew by marriage just before moving to the West Coast. I did not relish the thought of something happening to my new automobile.
Scanning the neighborhood with a sharpened eye, I suddenly spotted my car a quarter-mile away, down at the end of our street casually resting against the neighbor’s block retaining wall. Relieved to know I still possessed a car; I was panicked at thoughts of what might could have happened. I quickly walked over to the car, to assess potential damages. Mentally; I was prepared to see the worst possible scenario. Most of all, I feared damage to my neighbor‘s retaining wall.
Investigation revealed no serious damages, other than a very slightly-crimped fender. Stricken with the possibilities of what could have happened, I observed that my Chrysler had somehow wandered down the street on its own and mindlessly meandered across the T-intersection, rolled over the curb and gently rested against the block retainer wall.
Hindsight dictated the facts of the case: I had hurriedly parked, given the gearshift a thoughtless shove, and hurried into the house. It could have been a very costly lesson; yet, it left me with little more than a deep gash in my pride plus a well-learned lesson—“count your blessings.”
In retrospect. my wandering Chrysler could have struck another vehicle approaching our neighborhood. It could have bumped one of the occasional pedestrians walking in our community. It could have just as easily crashed into one of the nearby homes. It could have easily damaged the retainer wall. I knew any of these alternatives could readily have resulted in a lawsuit for damages of some kind!
Since I was already in emotional overload with my work and my personal life; my anxiety knew no limits. I needed no additional agenda with which to cope, but when my panic lowered enough for me to calm down, I began to realize just how foolish my anxiety appeared; I began to see just how much worse off I could have been.
I saw how much greater damage my thoughtless action could have created; after all, it was my fault. With that reassessment, I began counting my blessings. I remembered watching the recent retreat of storm clouds and seeing the sun joyfully pop out. I had a good job. I enjoyed free time with my family. My health was good. I enjoyed a comfortable four-bedroom home in a good neighborhood. We enjoyed good neighbors and we loved our church, within walking distance. We were people of faith and we lived without harassment or threat of imprisonment. It was perfectly obvious that God had not abandoned us. We experienced His Presence in our lives and His Word confirmed his loving grace.
A thankful heart looks beyond the circumstances of cloudy days and enjoys the day at hand; cloudy or clear, sunny or partly-sunny. Thus the Psalmist reminded us to “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will act” (Psalm 37:5 RSV).
Out of his library of personal experience, the Apostle Paul added this thoughtful conclusion: be “joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (I Thessalonians 5:16-17 NIV).
Having now passed ninety mile-markers, I have learned to count my blessings and breathe a quick “thank you, Lord.” When I lost my beloved a year ago, I could neither weep nor ask for more. Our days had already been well seasoned with God’s loving grace. The fact that God had given us seventy years together instead of the three-to-twelve months the doctors had diagnosed for her at twenty, only added peppery zest to my days.
As I transition through this Christ’s Birthday Season and prepare for the potential new year before me, I understand that valuing those things that last longest and count most is what truly adds the music to my life. There is an inspirational old hymn I have sung throughout my entire lifespan that offers this rousing conclusion to my theme: It suggests,
When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings--name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath
done.1
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1 “Count Your
Blessings” by Johnson Oatman, Jr. and Edwin G. Excell, PRAISE! Our Songs and
Hymns, edited by Norman Johnson. Grand Rapids: Singspiration Division of
Zondervan Corp., 1979, p. 430.
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walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com
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