Keep Your Windshield Clear

Keep your windshield clear!

It’s hard to see out of a dirty windshield.  Plain and simple.  But, one little bug here and there, or a little dirt doesn’t necessarily keep us from seeing out of our windshield, right?  And sometimes, we can even let things build a little – maybe even a lot – before we actually realize we can’t even see where we are going.  

There are so many issues when we can't see clearly - we might turn down the wrong path, we may even go off the path all together, we might end up traveling down a road we were never meant to travel.  If we can’t see to keep our journey in check, we definitely can’t help anyone else along their journey.  And heaven forbid we steer them in the wrong direction because we can’t see what’s in front of us.  

So, what’s our windshield?  We see, feel, touch…we experience life, we filter everything through our emotions.  How we feel any given day at any given time for any given reason.  As women, we tend to be quite influenced by our emotions.  When we are living an honest life, the little bugs that seem to splat on our windshields can easily be wiped away.  They still hit the windshield, but you have enough water in that little button in your wipers to clean it off.  Even when it rains cats and dogs and we just want to pull over, when we are prepared with sharp wiper blades, the water brushes aside almost as quickly as it hits the glass.

However, when we hide what’s going on inside, when we don’t surround ourselves with close confidants who can “tell us like it really is,” stuff inevitably starts building up on our windshields.  We push our feelings down and let the hurt build.  Someone hurts you and you push it down, you pretend you aren’t hurt but really, you ARE hurt.  Or maybe you get let down by a friend.  Again, you push your feelings down and hide them.  Maybe you find out your co-worker was recognized by your boss and you weren't.  You know you SHOULDN’T be upset, but you are. You aren’t willing to admit that such seemingly insignificant things bother you.  You lie to yourself.  You don’t let anyone else know what you are dealing with.  You don’t let anyone else help you get to the REAL root of any of those issues.  Now your windshield isn’t only dirty, but the jealousy and bitterness that is building has caused you to take your eyes off the road entirely.  

Now I’m NOT saying you SHOULD allow little things to bother you.  As believers, we need to be spiritually minded and try to see the bigger picture.  However, we ARE human and there will be things that hurt us in this life.  What happens when you allow something that genuinely hurt you to sit?  Something begins to grow.  It grows and it develops roots.  Then one day, somebody says or does something and you explode – you look up and you can no longer see the road, so much so that you now run the risk of wrecking the car. What grows is ugly and it’s dangerous.  Jealously and bitterness are 2 emotional cancers that can destroy much more than your ability to lead.

Most of the time, it is easier to disguise what’s going on inside than to admit we are struggling with something.   But, we have got to keep our windshields clear!  Try your best not to hide your feelings and let disappointing emotions build up in your life.  And don’t deny them in an effort to make them disappear, either.  We’re talking about being transparent.  You can’t pretend nothing is bothering you so you CAN pretend to have a clear windshield. The truth WILL come out – one way or another, your true emotions will emerge.  Don’t simply DENY that you are struggling.  That doesn’t keep your windshield clear – it only adds mud to it.  And in the end, it will take a lot more to get your windshield clean.  

Sometimes you can clean that windshield all on your own.  If you admit what’s been going on, maybe even go to the person you are upset with and let them know they hurt you – they may not even know it.  Sometimes, simply praying and confessing to God how you feel can make you feel better.  Sometimes writing a letter that you trash when you are done helps – it’s a safe way to vent so nobody but God has to hear. :)  Sometimes, praying for the person who hurt you will help since it's hard to stay mad at someone you are praying for.

---

But sometimes, you just can’t do it on your own.  I wouldn’t suggest you share your challenges with just anyone, but find some peers, friends, mentors that you CAN be honest with, who make you feel safe to be transparent.  These women can help you keep your windshield clear.  They can encourage you as you cry and they can challenge you to see the big picture.  It’s not always easy to get that windshield clean.  It may take a little scrubbing – it may even take someone else helping you to scrub.  It may be a little embarrassing that you weren’t able to clean that windshield on your own, but it’s ok.  God has given us those friends – allow Him … to work thru them … to help you.  

Being a "Christian" doesn’t mean you never struggle, never have questions, never lose your cool, and never make a mistake.  Being a Christian means that even when you are struggling you have the hope in Jesus that you can grow thru your struggle and become a better person on the other side of it.  Being a Christian is recognizing that you can’t do things on your own.  It is discerning who to ask for help and then having the courage to do so.  Being a Christian means keeping bitterness and jealousy off of your spiritual windshield so you can not only see your own path, but so you can help guide others as well.

---

Praying for us all to have clean windshields!!!

Thanks for being you,
and for allowing me to be me!
jenny

---