Auto Pilot

Women of Faith:

I dream of the day when I can get in my car, hit auto pilot, and get where I want to go. I see technology, good and bad, in every area of my life. But just as much as I wish for some parts of technology to make my life easier, I also cringe when I see someone make a decision based totally on what the computer told them. And I pray that some technology would never have even been invented.

Technology brings me clients who have allowed a program to prepare their taxes. They have relied on “the program” to decide which questions need asked, and which answers are right; and then are surprised to receive a letter from another computer telling them that the questions they were asked or the answers they gave were incorrect.

I rely on a GPS unit, and then get upset when I get lost in a city I don’t know. I seldom carry a map these days, and I’m even too busy to plan an alternative route using “MapQuest” in case the GPS fails. And it’s too scary to ask an actual person in the neighborhood where some business or activity is located.

I get frustrated when a computer chip in my car shuts it down in the middle of nowhere and a gifted mechanic like Stan is forced to take it to a machine to be “reset.”

And I am brought to my knees in sorrow for the technical part of medicine which thru birth control and abortion, are allowed to “plan” when and which children will bring love into our world.

There is nothing beautiful about technology. There is no love in any of the decisions made by it. And yet our world relies on it more and more, content to be on “auto pilot.”

I don’t find joy, love, peace or comfort when I am on “auto pilot,” when I am bored from staring at a computer all day, or from merely putting numbers into the “right” places.

I find joy, peace, comfort and love when I see the first robin, or when a deer and its babies are standing in the middle of the road. I am energized and ready for change when the first green grass of spring appears. I am awed by the first glimpse of the mountains each time we travel to see the kids and approach Denver.

I get excited when I know which question to ask so that I can save a client a few dollars, or put their mind at ease when I answer a question they’re not even sure how to ask. I feel warmth and comfort in the giggles of a child who has found some treasure in the pile of rocks outside my door, or when Colby or Karolina reach out for a Grandma hug or to blow me a kiss. And I feel love in a friends’ handwritten thank you, or Stan’s eyes as we connect across a crowded room.

And yes I am reminded that it is God who created each of these awe inspiring, energizing, precious beings in my life and my mind to understand and care about them. Not technology, but nature.

‘Thus says the LORD: Stand beside the earliest roads, ask the pathways of old, which is the way to good, and walk it; thus you will find rest for your souls. But they said, "We will not walk it."’ Jeremiah 6:16

Dear God, I praise Your every creation, Your every awe inspiring mountain, Your genius in creating the seasons which force me out of “auto pilot.” Help to remind me to embrace the obstacles that force me to change course and draw nearer to You. Bless each of us with the wisdom to use technology for Your glory and not to walk our path, but to follow Your path. Thank you for allowing me to feel Your heavenly arms, to see Your creatures, and to share Your love. Help me to find rest. Amen.

In all things great and small, God created them all.

May you be blessed not with “auto steer” but with the grace to embrace and follow God’s path and to treasure the gifts He has given us,
Charlotte