“REED” This

Watching Over

When I was growing up, we used to take Saturday or Sunday afternoon drives. My father enjoyed loading all of us up in the car and just driving out into the country. We usually wound up parking the car alongside a small dirt road and would start walking down it just to see what we could see. Many times we would go up around the small rivers that ran north of town. We could walk across the low-water bridges so we could explore both sides. I remember gathering little sticks with my brother and we would throw one in on one side and watch it be sucked down into one of the pipes that ran underneath the road, then run over to the other side to see when it came out and watch it continue to float down the river. Those trips were a lot of fun. We never knew just where we would go or what we would see, but it was good to just be together. Dad was always telling us how to know what kind of tree this was or what kind of plant that was. And we usually would go home with a sack full of poke salad leaves that he wanted to cook up and eat later. We would take these drives all throughout the year. One time, it had snowed quite a lot and we wanted to see how everything looked in snow. We headed out north ninth street several miles and came upon a new subdivision that was being built. These were five or more acre lots out in the woods. My father knew someone that was building a house out there and decided to see how it was coming along. I remember getting to the drive that led up to the house. It was pretty steep going up the side of the hill and was probably fifty yards long. Now, you need to know, all these roads were just dirt and gravel. Nothing was paved out there then, and I don’t think it is even now. Anyway, my mother and us kids weren’t too sure about driving up to that house. There was at least six inches of snow on the ground, and we were just in an old station wagon. The drive was solid white and you could only tell where it was by how the ground sloped down to the brush and trees on either side. There were no completed houses around and we were a long way from anyone else. But dad thought we could make it, so we headed up the drive. We all were pretty nervous and it took some time, but we finally made it up the hill and were next to the house. I guess it looked okay, I don’t remember. All I remember was what happened next. As we sat there, we soon realized there was nowhere for us to turn the car around. We were going to have to back down that long drive going downhill in the snow. It was scary enough driving up it, let alone having to back down it. Dad moved the gear shift and we slowly crept back down. He didn’t need to hold the brakes too hard or we would begin to slide. But, we didn’t want to go too fast or we could lose control and slide off one side or not be able to stop at the bottom and go across the main road into the ditch on the other side. It was a precarious situation. Finally, we were all able to breathe again when we eventually made it down. It was then that my father began laughing. We didn’t know why, but then he explained. Because of the snowy conditions and going uphill, my father had shifted down to “Low 1” to go up to the house. When he shifted to go back down, he moved the gear shift up two notches thinking he was shifting to “Reverse”, which would have been normal after driving forward. However, he forgot he was in “Low 1” and had simply shifted back to “Drive”. Turns out, we had backed down that hill with the transmission in “Drive”, not “Reverse”, and yet had made it down safely.

We all make mistakes that could have made things a lot worse had God not been watching over us. I’m sure there are so many harmful things He has kept from happening or kept us from because His eye was upon us and He shielded us from danger. Even when it’s not simple mistakes, but times we have deliberately put ourselves in harm’s way, His grace still covers us. Why does He do that? Why does He show us such mercy and grace? It’s certainly not because we deserve it. It can only be because He loves us so much. Psalm 121 is an encouraging chapter that reminds us that God is watching over us and protecting us.

“I look up to the mountains – does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, He who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. The Lord Himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.”

Psalm 121 NLT

We have and serve a loving God. Thank Him for always watching over you with His great love and protection.

Bro. Paul Reed

Tuesday, August 24, 2021