Susan

Let me introduce you to Susan…no, she is not my daughter - I am the proud Mama of boys! She is….my car :) Not quite sure why she has the nickname, Susan, but Cole and his friends gave her the name on their Senior Trip to Maine, and it stuck.

Susan has lived a lot of life. She has seen the East Coast up to Maine. She has traveled multiple times to Texas. She has hauled rabbits, animal feed, groceries, kids, baseball equipment, Norwex displays, yard sale items, trash picked furniture, beach “stuff”, just to name a few things. And, along the way, there has been A LOT of life lived in Susan. She saw both of my boys take the wheel and drive home from their permit tests. She was privy to great conversations, angry words, lots of tears, and lots of laughter. She probably listened to Toby Mac “Backseat Driver” thousands of times! Her radio can rock it! The sunroof has been left open in the rain, she has been cleaned out from the dirt and mess of years of the Fair, I could continue. The life of Susan.

Susan has a lot of good memories, but she has also seen some of the worst. Susan took each of us to the ER multiple times. She witnessed throwing up by the side of the road on the way to TX to take Cole to college. And, along the way, Susan has had her fair share of bumps and dents.

“Crash” backed out of our driveway into the shavings straight truck and completely shattered the back window along with the side panel. The other time that the back window was crushed to smithereens was when “Crash” carefully closed the lid after checking on his car full of rabbits in their cages. It caused enough pressure, since it was so tightly packed, that the glass shattered all over the Quaker Steak and Lube parking lot in Western PA (I will never eat there again - PTSD) - about 5 hours from home. Here I was with 2 teenagers, and a car full of rabbits…

So, thankfully there was a Walmart nearby. We went into the restaurant and got a broom and swept up the mess, then went to the nearby Walmart and purchased duct tape and a blue tarp. I rigged the tarp with tape to go inside the window so that no air would get into the car and disrupt the all important fur of the rabbits… and us! And away we went! Blue tarp flopping in the wind, a light rain starting, and one very nervous Mom just praying that we would make it the whole way home! And guess what????? We DID!

“Everything is always working out for me.”

That little statement has shifted my mindset SOOOO many times! It is borrowed from Jon Acuff’s book, Soundtracks. Probably one of my most favorite books (and I read a lot!). Basically, he explains brain research and the importance of setting your mind up for success. Of “taking every thought captive, “ sound familiar?

Grab your Bible. Open to 2 Corinthians 10:4-5.

I want you to carefully read that passage.

Underline it, write it on an index card and hang it on your bathroom mirror. This is a verse that I have returned to so many times. It reminds me that we are not fighting with weapons of the world, instead, we are fighting against thoughts that are contrary to the knowledge of God. Our job is to take every thought captive and to make it obedient to Christ.

EVERY THOUGHT!

When you have a negative thought, grab it. Demolish every thought that is contrary to what the Word of God says. This scripture immediately makes me think of Ephesians.

Open your Bible and read Ephesians 6:10-20. The Armor of God

Did you catch that section at the end of Verse 18? And pray in the Spirit on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep praying for the saints.

BE ALERT: Our minds - our minds drive our actions. We get to decide - can we expectantly say that “everything is always working out for me” and then TRULY trust that God is working ALL things out for us? Even when our car gets crashed, or we get sick on one of the most important trips of our lives…???

I am not a world traveler. In fact, the second time I was on a plane, I was by myself on my way to see Cole after his car accident. But, I do love to fly, even though I still sometimes feel a little “new” at it. Don’t love to fly? Check out the book on my resource list. It comes highly recommended by a friend of mine who was terribly afraid to fly for a very long time.

So the first time I flew into the Denver airport was a few years ago. I asked a nice young man how I to get to baggage claim and he pointed me towards the tram. I caught the tram, got to the right baggage claim area….and after a wait…GOT MY BAGGAGE! I remember distinctly walking towards the Uber/Lyft pick up area and saying to myself - see…”everything is working out for me.” True, I had to wait about 45 minutes for my luggage. True, I had to ask how in the world to get to the baggage claim, but... I got my luggage, I found the right exit for the Uber, and soon I was on my way to my Norwex conference - I must say in a stunningly beautiful Gaylord Resort. So FABULOUS!

In all the years that I have owned Susan, I have never gotten a flat tire…

(you know what is coming!)

Until now…

Susan picked up a huge bolt! When I went to leave my friend's house, something did NOT sound right. I jumped out and sure enough, my tire was flat. Not just a little flat, but flat as a pancake with no chance for survival. So, I quickly went back to knock on my friend's door, and caught her before she had to leave for her appointment so that I could use her restroom.