November 26, 2011 Journal Entry. Caught up in a Moment of Worship While Driving.

Almighty Infinite Father, Your ways never cease to amaze me.

            Today, I faced a six-hour drive on my return home from spending the Thanksgiving Day holiday with my husband. I was tired and dreading the long drive home. Hoping that our seven-year-old son would get comfortable in the back seat, recline and possibly take a nap, I laid out some cozy blankets and a comfortable pillow for him. Then, I stacked my favorite compact discs (Cd's) by my side. "Perhaps, if I sang along to each 2-hour CD, the drive might seem to go by faster." I thought to myself.

            I was surprised when the first CD I put in immediately lulled my son to sleep. Unfortunately, the slow melody was incidentally calming me too.  So, I switched the CD for the next one in the stack. Christmas favorites. All slow songs again! I had chosen all slow songs for the drive. What was I going to do now?

            I turned the radio on. Maybe I could find a contemporary Christian radio station. As the digital scanner ran through each station, I noticed a pattern. All of the stations that came in clear were in Spanish. Then finally, one English station tuned into my radio. The DJ said, "Oldies..." A song from my childhood began to play. I hadn't listened to anything but Christian radio for the past three years. So, I wondered, "Can a true believer sing secular songs and still worship God from a pure heart?"

Then, suddenly, the song, "Never knew love like this before," by Stephanie Mills had me sitting up straight and bouncing to the beat. Soon, I was lost in a moment of worship. Forgetting how foolish I might look to other drivers on the road, I raised my left hand in the air and held onto the steering wheel with my right. I found myself singing along. And as I sang, I thought about my relationship with You. “ I never knew love like this before. Now, I’m lonely never more. Since You came into my life.” I began to picture singing the song directly to the You as though You were sitting to my right in the passenger seat. By the time the second song began to play, my eyes had welled with tears and I was struggling to keep my eyes open.  I listened to a few more songs, all the while imagining You, my Savior, by my side. Time flew by.

As I pulled up to our home, I was still enjoying the intimacy of Your presence, almost wishing the drive had lasted longer. While I shook our son awake, in my heart I prayed. "Thank You, Jesus, for this precious time spent alone by Your side!"