My daddy loved cars and everything about them. In fact, he worked for Ford Motor Company for nearly forty years and restored many antique Ford cars. He taught me to drive both manuals and automatics. Daddy taught me how to drive and I trust his ways.

I remember the first time I drove alone. It was raining and dark outside. I asked my mama if I could go meet my friend. 

Her face said it all. Rain, dark, dangerous…. 

“Please?” I asked with pleading eyes.

So getting a second opinion, she asked my daddy what he thought about it. 

“Well I reckon she knows where the lights and windshield wipers are; don’t she?” He was not being a smarty britches; he was being funny. But, he was confident in my ability since he had instructed me.

Dukes of Hazzard Driving Style

All these years later, I still consider myself a good driver. Truth be known, if I wasn’t, Karla and I would no longer be on Earth. There have been several times when I had to resort to a “Dukes of Hazzard” driving style, which saved us. 

For example, once we were lost in the middle of the night. (Truth be known, that happened more than one time) We were 18 and 19 year- old-college students, but neither of us had ever driven in downtown Atlanta. We were so off-course! No cell phones or GPS, and the one-way-streets were a nightmare! At one point, I was irritated at being lost and driving way too fast. When all of a sudden, in the darkness, a huge ROAD CLOSED barrier appeared. I slammed on the brakes, bringing us to a stop in a sliding, digging, and spraying ice hockey style. We sat silently in shock for a moment, caught our breaths, and then moved on. 

I Trust my Ability

In 1989, when I began my teaching career, I bought a brand new Ford Mustang, fresh off the assembly line. I have purchased several used cars since with all of these being ten or more years old. Two years ago I bought my second ever brand-new car. It is a Chevrolet. Sorry Daddy, it was a better price than the Ford. 

My new car has lots of whistles and bells: BlueTooth, keyless entry, automatic lights. But, the most important luxury to me is the ability to crank it from inside my house on a cold winter day! I was all excited about the features, except one, the backup camera. My daddy taught me to drive in reverse by looking over my shoulder.

For twenty-seven years of my adulthood, I had a really long driveway through the woods. I would put my car in reverse and drive as fast as I could up the drive, just for fun. My three kids would laugh, feeling it was like a backward ride at the fair. I know I was never endangering them; I trusted my ability. But with a backup camera, the manufacturer expects me to trust them. I am supposed to peer at a screen and backup without really looking. I don’t think so! That is not how Daddy taught me.

Trusting is a Slow Process

During the first six months, when I would back up, anyone who rode with me would say, “Why don’t you use your backup camera?” 

My response, “I don’t trust it.”

While I do use it now, it was a slow process. Anytime I went in reverse, the screen on the dash automatically showed me the view behind the car, whether I wanted it to or not. My eyes couldn’t help but glance in its direction. Eventually I gave in. It took a little getting used to, but now I like it. I can even see when I am backing out of a parking space and I am beside a mile-long SUV. It gives me a little view of the side before I can see it. 

When Karla and I go to Florida every summer, we take turns with our cars. This past July, we took hers. (It is a Ford, Daddy would be proud.) Even when we take her vehicle, I am always the driver, and she is the navigator, music selector, temperature regulator, food finder, and much more.

The first time I backed up, I immediately looked at the camera, which was NOT there. I felt lost! It was bizarre. I almost didn’t trust my own eyes to look over my shoulder, even though I had trusted my capability for decades. What if there is something I can’t see, the camera always knows. Right? Yes,The camera sees all.

I thought of how this scenario is like trusting God. You go through life doing it your way. It’s comfortable, and you trust yourself. But when you finally learn to trust God, the manufacturer of each of us, it is such a relief. You know He sees what you can’t. And those moments when you fall back into your old way and don’t fully rely on Him, you will feel lost. 

If you have not learned to trust God in your daily walk you have a new year ahead of you. It may seem foreign at first, but you will soon realize, you can depend on him. He’s got your back. And you will never want to be without him again.

“For we live by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)