My car is two years old. In the past 7 months, I’ve returned to the dealership three times because every time I go over a speed bump or turn left I hear this crunching noise. It’s the same old story. “We fixed it.”
I thought “fixed” meant “forget about it, this won’t be an issue any longer.” Alas, how wrong was my thinking? Aside from the inconvenience however, I feel rather fortunate. My car is still under warranty.
Things appear to be not much different in my spiritual life. Just when I think God has dealt with an issue in my life – it pops up again and again, just on another, deeper level. “Is she actually comparing God’s work to an auto service shop?” you may be asking yourself. Well, yes, kind of.
Until recently, I thought that when God “fixed” something in me that it was permanent. Don’t distress if you’re going through the same thing or having similar thoughts. What God has fixed – the change He’s made in me – is permanent . . . to the extent, or level, that He addressed the problem.
I drive a 2007 Aveo. Every year, they come out with a newer and better model; they see what “issues” have been coming up with the previous years models and address those issues, but guess what? That doesn’t mean they’ll ever produce a perfect model.
God prioritizes what needs attention first. Sometimes, He needs me back in the shop – I’m an older model, you know. He started by fixing one thing, like putting the brakes on some of my bad habits and attitudes. Some of those things ran pretty deep. He knew I wasn’t ready for an overhaul. He knows what’s best and His timing is perfect. As far as He’s concerned, I’m permanently under warranty.
"This is the way God works. Over and over again He pulls our souls back from certain destruction so we'll see the light—and live in the light!” Job 33:29 MSG.
