Missions is Being Calm Under Pressure

Last Sunday afternoon there was a funeral in the community. That evening many people celebrated by going to local bars or rum shops to drink. So I wasn’t surprised to see someone had parked his vehicle a bit too far towards the middle of a small road.

This is actually a common problem here because the roads are small….

And offers three choices:

Try to squeeze by
Back down the road you just came up
Wait for the person who parked to move their vehicle

Understandably choice three is the most common response, though I’ve reversed down more than a few roads, and put a few scratches on my vehicle. But getting the person to move their vehicle isn’t as easy as it sounds. Particularly if they are drunk!!

Sunday night I got out of the van, and first confirmed there wasn’t enough room for me to pass. Then after examining the situation revealed if the mans right hand mirror was pushed in, I’d have “just enough room” to pass.

Now all I had to do was wait for the vehicle owner to come and push in his right hand mirror…

piece of cake right 🙂

adding to the stress of the situation was the fact that at least two vehicles were behind me. And men from nearby rum shops began telling me there was “plenty of room to pass” (there wasn’t). With every moment the pressure continued to build.

But in the midst of that stress I was perfectly calm.

Because I’d experienced the situation before.

Small Vincentian roads means you will many times have to squeeze by other vehicles or take a moment to examine the situation before passing. And sometimes that means backing down an entire road you just drove up! The first-time experiences like this are the most frightening thing on earth. But each time you go through it, that experience becomes less and less frightening.

The adventure of small roads gave me a calmness and peace as I patiently waited for the man who parked the car to push in his right hand mirror.

Thankfully the man realized his mistake, walked up and pushed in the mirror (noticing that was the big problem). He then helpfully guided me past his vehicle. But even if it didn’t end in such a nice way, my experience of the “worst case scenario” gave a sense of peace.

Nobody likes being under pressure.

But that pressure teaches us how to control our emotions, focus our mind, and find a solution in crisis situations. Those who can remain calm while drunks telling them they cannot drive have really accomplished something 🙂

Finishing my drive to church last night I thanked God for the stressful roads of SVG. Because they teach me how to face pressure in a way that glorifies God.