I love driving. I love long distance driving, in fact. It gives me a taste of adventure; and freedom in exploring new routes, discovering cultures, and reading quirky road signs. I always find myself curious of how towns and their cultures may equate or differ from each other based on the local shops available, how their houses look, how people dress up in each, and even which trees and plants are being grown.
But not every drive is smooth. And if you ask what my least favorite is, and probably yours too - that would be the STOPS. They are sometimes unplanned, take long, and kill a little momentum and excitement.
But usually, these STOPS are hands down essential. Aside from roadside stops to buy walis tambo, a jar of jam, and sometimes a bottle of Carabao milk (yes, how very "tita" of me); I usually stop for two reasons: TO REST OR TO REROUTE.
REST
During an international road safety driving class, we were taught to take a break from driving every after 2 hours of long driving. Long distance driving requires extra precaution and serious mind and body preparation. Pulling over gives the driver (and the entertaining passengers) a time to freshen up for optimal awareness and road judgement.
In short, this kind of rest will keep you going to your final destination.
REROUTE
I can no longer imagine life without GPS! And most of the time, signals get bad and traffic gets worse. And waze and google maps being real-time, change routes in between. Since it's hard and not advisable to multitask behind the wheels, the safest way to do is to pull over, then restudy or study the new route, and drive again. Distractions in the middle are pretty normal. We can lose our way, but it's okay.
You can always reroute.
Now a little realization and story time. My career journey had been wild and crazy and tiring. I had my fair share of stops, like a lot. But I had proven every time that miracles can happen when you stop. And our most recent vacation is another testament of that. A memorable one actually. I've always stopped to REST, but this vacation was different. Clue, read until the end.
With absolutely no plans at all, we packed our bags and flew. Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from it, as I was only wanting to squeeze in some rest and a little makeup before I get busy again since the wedding (makeup) industry is getting back to its feet.
I was already happy that our tickets were already paid in full before we even fly, we had free lodging waiting for us, I had a makeup class to attend, and we had $300 dollars cash left in our wallets just in case we wanted to spend on little items.
But, little did I know that my simple prayer of "God, surprise me" will turn to GOD SURPRISED ME!
After about a week, someone gave us $3000 so we can enjoy our stay in LA. This person wanted us to document our trip, stuffed ourselves with the best burgers LA has to offer, shop a little - all so we can live this person's dream LA vacation. How crazy!!! Watch our vlogs here.
But not just that! Finally our schedule permitted, and I am now an internationally-trained makeup artist. I also went back to the corporate world, after leaving it for 6 months, to do freelance makeup full-time. Funny how God actually REROUTED me back to the corporate. More story on that next time.
In our world today where toxic busyness is being glorified,
Stopping is not always ideal.
But lo and behold,
Stopping is not always idle.
Because,
Stopping can mean actively letting go, and letting God.
Even though how cliche it may sound.
And to prove my point, here's a little bible trivia. When people believed that miracles couldn't be performed during rest, there's Jesus performing miracles on Sabbaths.
So whatever you're going through, take a break! Trust that God can take care of your situation, even how hopeless it may look like now. That's a posture to ponder.
He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
~Isaiah 40:29-31
The Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will give rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.
~Matthew 11:28-30