My Dad had a passion for cars. New cars, old cars, big cars, small cars, just any kind of car. He worked as a mechanic for over almost 40 years for United Airlines, at the San Francisco Airport. He worked on planes, and ground equipment – trucks, baggage carriers …. But his passion was for cars.
Back in the 1960’s and early ’70’s, when the new Car Models arrived on the lot, it was a big deal. The dealerships would hold Showroom parties. They’d send invitations in the mail to come check out the new models. There would be Hollywood style search lights, lighting up the sky as if Cary Grant or Elizabeth Taylor were walking the red carpet to a new movie premier. It was exciting. And my family always attended these events. It was the closest thing to a cocktail party I would ever see. Waiters walked around the showroom with trays of refreshments. I’m not sure what the other adults were drinking, but my family always had our choice of Colas, 7 up, or a variety of other soft drinks.
But the real star of the show was the new model cars. We didn’t have auto malls back in those days, but the dealerships did tend to congregate in the same general area. For us, it was on Steven’s Creek Blvd, just a few miles down the road from our house. Every year we made our annual trip to Stevens Creek Buick, Courtesy Chevrolet, and Frontier Ford. Each dealership was a unique and exciting experience that gave us a peek into the future of what cars would look like for the next few years.
But then, if me and my sister promised to be on our best behavior, Dad would let us stop and go inside St. Clair Cadillac! I remember giving my best performance at acting like I came from a family who could actually afford to buy one! Oh, when I saw the 1970 Eldorado Convertible on that showroom floor, well, a brand new NASA rocket couldn’t have thrilled me more. And since the Car manufacturers only came out with new models once a year, it was an event we looked forward too, and it never seemed to become common. It was only one time a year!
God made the eagle and taught it to fly. He gave the Wright Brothers, and every other plane builder since, the intellect, creativity, and courage they needed to make flight possible. He unlocked the door to wisdom and revealed to them that Thrust plus Resistance equals Lift. And it was God who let them see that the “Law of Lift” is higher than the “Law of Gravity”. As long as there is Thrust and Resistance, the law of lift will override the law of Gravity.
Here are few Miracles that many of us just don’t view as miraculous anymore.
Genesis 1:20-22 (NIV)
20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
God Formed Our Bodies In Our Mother’s Wombs.
Psalm139:13-18
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
Too often we take the miraculous for granted. In doing so, we participate in Grounding the Grandeur of God, making His greatness commonplace. Yet His grace continues it’s work in us.
2nd Corinthians: 5:17
17 …if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Great music and great songs are all around us. We need to guard ourselves from letting our ears and our hearts grow accustom to how wonderful these creations really are. How different do you think your day would be if you made up your mind today, to experience the wonder of all these Common Miracles around you?
Until next time, keep on writing. . .
