This past week was a mess. Here’s how it went…

Monday:  Noon…left for Lafayette, LA…pouring rain.  8:00 PM…went to bed in my truck…pouring rain.  Tuesday:  7:30 AM…left for Memphis…pouring rain.  Wednesday: 3:30 AM…left for South Carolina…pouring rain.  10:00 AM…drove through Atlanta…pouring rain.  2:00 PM…arrive Greenville…pouring rain.  5:00 PM…to bed in truck…pouring rain.  Thursday: 1:00 AM…leave Greenville for Atlanta…blinding rain. 4:30 AM…arrive to pick up Clorox…blinding rain.  9:00 AM…in Birmingham…Quit raining!  2:00 PM…arrive back in Memphis…cloudy skies, no rain! 

There were occasions during the above when I had to be out of the truck coupling/uncoupling a trailer, checking a seal, kicking tires, all the usual. It was a mess. Then, the drive! Dark, dank, slippery, hazy, alone. It’s no place for the weak. But… I was thinking this morning about what keeps me going in such conditions. I came up with three essentials:

1 – Home – I talk with Lynn daily.  She helps me make it.

2 – I know where I’m going.  I know the way.  I’m familiar with the dock.  I know the people there.

3 – On-the-road support.  If something happens with to the truck and I break down, help is just a phone call away…no matter where I am or what time it is.  That’s the luxury of working for a large, well connected company.

I didn’t mean to make this blog into a sermon, but the same three essentials that get me through tough times on the road are necessary for life.  If you want to get through what life throws at you, here’s what will see you through:

1 – Build a stable home.  Loving wife and kids can get you through most anything.  So, kids: Marry well!  Get premarriage counseling.  Work at building the relationship after the wedding is over.

2 – Know where you’re going.  I don’t just mean heaven, but find out why you are on this earth and develop a plan to fulfill your calling.  Every person is uniquely equipped to do something unique and specific.  We are happiest when we are doing what we have been put on earth to do, and I’m not talking about vocation.  Hint: It has something to do with care and keeping of fellow mankind.

3 – Claim your “on the road support.”  God is so close, but longs to be closer.  Tough times can and should draw us closer to the Father.   Jesus desires a personal relationship with you, daily interaction and intimate involvement in your life.   He doesn’t want to be called on just in tough times.

I leave tomorrow for another week on the road.  This week, I’m ready!