Best Beloved always tells me that a clean car is a more fuel-efficient car 😊!

I think this is a carryover from what he observed growing up around his car-loving dad, Japie van den Berg. My father-in-law took great pride in his vehicle collection, most of them American classics that he took into his care when their owners had a change of taste. Some seldom if ever left the showroom at the family business, but every vehicle was always clean and beautifully polished – just in case he decided to take it out into the sunshine for a while or a bride needed an elegant chariot 😊.

Consequently, we can often be observed at the carwash downtown, mostly in my bright yellow Kia Soul which Pete bought me a few years ago. I loved the color but needed to put my stamp on it, hence the decals. And of course, being a musician, my choice of car-tattoos was obvious 😊.

Last week, right in the middle of the cycle, my car came to an abrupt halt while the brushes continued their frenetic scrubbing. I was horrified. Would my precious applied art be damaged? But, no, thank goodness. A vigilant attendant sorted out the problem quickly and it wasn’t too long before we exited the scary wash, cleaner than usual I think, but all art intact.

On those days when things don’t go as I had planned, I confess it can feel like that day in the stopped car wash and I’m not always sure that I can withstand the sense of an intensified cleaning process. I just feel stuck and would like to hurry back to my normal track…

Like you, I have often heard Psalm 37:23 paraphrased like this: “The steps (and the stops) of the righteous are ordered of the Lord…” and I know that it is meant well, but to someone feeling trapped in a “stop” these words can sound dismissive rather than encouraging. That’s when a simple, wordless hug from someone who recognizes a “stop” and comes alongside, can turn your “stop” back into a “step” – it is a truly precious gift.

Our Lord Jesus had a major stop on the way to Calvary. “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” (Matt. 26:38) Sadly, the disciples were unable to fulfil this simple request. Surely, they wept at this memory in later years?

My prayer is that I always allow the Holy Spirit to make me aware of someone’s stop, hoping that I may be able to help turn it into a step.

Regret is a bitter thing.

‍