When I was fourteen years-old we lived outside of the capital of Montana, where my dad was the minister at the church we attended. He usually took his own car to church early on Sunday mornings, and my mom would follow with all of us kids, getting there right before church started.
One of those routine Sundays, I wasn’t feeling well. As the morning progressed, I got sicker and sicker. After throwing up my toenails for the third time, my dad said he would take me home. Someone else was delivering the sermon that day, and so he felt he could take me home. He asked me if I had my learners permit with me. I looked at him like he had three heads, answered yes, and he handed me the keys to his car. As I crawled behind the wheel, I asked my dad why he wanted me to drive of all days, the day that I felt horrible. He smiled his crooked smile and explained that one day I would thank him. One day I may be pregnant and in labor and need to drive myself to the hospital…. Or one day I might be really hurt and need to drive myself to the doctor or hospital. I drove the two of us home, only having to pull over once to throw up again.
Less than an hour later the rest of my family got home from church. My fever spiked, I could not stand up straight, and my mom insisted on taking me to the hospital. As soon as we arrived, the doctors realized I had appendicitis, and rushed me in to remove my appendix.
Being the klutz that I am, my dad’s training has come in handy. I have had to drive myself to Urgent Care with some broken toes, a sprained arm, again with torn tendons and sprained ankle, and even a broken shoulder.
My dad knew that I was not the most coordinated child. He knew that someday I would need to be able to take care of myself. I am very grateful to him for making sure I was prepared to take myself to the doctors when the time arrived. God works the same way. He wants us to be prepared to handle whatever we need to face. With His help, He wants us to have the strength and be armed with the right tools and skills it will take to handle any situation we may encounter.
“The Lord gives His people strength. The Lord blesses them with peace.” Psalms 29:11
