Running on Empty
A couple months ago I was coming back home from Nasvhille after seeing one of my favorite bands, Switchfoot. I was driving back with my girlfriend and two of my buddies in her car. About halfway home I realized I was getting low on gas. I had about four bars left, which was a decent bit so I didn’t really pay much attention to it. I got wrapped up in conversation for the next thirty minutes or so and when I looked back down, I only had two bars and the gas light was on. I realized I needed to find a gas station soon, or I might be walking home.
Nashville is about two hours of straight interstate from my house, and there are times when there’s no civilization in sight. You can drive for a while before finding an exit with a gas station. Let alone a gas station open after midnight. I started to really focus on finding an exit with a gas station but there just didn’t seem to be any. Every time I would see an exit, it would be completely void of any gas stations. I looked down and realized I only had one bar. I started to get worried at this point because I wasn’t sure how long the car was going to drive. It wasn’t my car, and my girlfriend was asleep in the back so I didn’t wake her up and let her know I was about to run her car out of gas and make us walk in the cold. Finally, when I thought the car would go no further, I found an exit with a gas station. To my relief I made it to the gas station, filled up the car, and headed home.
Sometimes I think life can be like this. We keep running on empty just ignoring the warning signs, never really knowing when we’re going to run out. On top of that, we lose focus of where we were even headed. We are ships in the night with no direction and no way home. It’s usually after were so far out in the sea that we realize we lost our way, and at this point we don’t know which direction to turn.
I’ve made a lot of decisions in my life that have led me to dark places I never thought I’d be. I’ve felt lost, lonely, and without direction. I’ve gotten so focused on the present issues that I forgot to look ahead. I forgot to maintain the course. Not only that, but I was running on empty. My life wasn’t being fueled by anything because I had no direction or purpose.
I feel like this sometimes still today, but I remember now what is important. I remember to stay focused and keep pressing through, even when I feel like I’m about to run out. There are times where I’m not sure if I’ll find the next stop. I’m just driving in the night hoping to see light somewhere up ahead. Hoping for something to give me strength. But I do know that there is always a light ahead. There is always hope.
