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TheDiscipleMD

Many years ago I received a last minute phone call at my office asking if I would be available to drive an important business magnet and church leader to a meeting that evening. I said I would, and since within hours I needed to be on the road,  the first thought that came to mind was, “How clean is my car?”  The self imposed question was more of the rhetorical type, since, as the father of five small children, I knew it was a mess.  I hurriedly told my secretary that I would be gone for the rest of the day as I walked out the door, and immediately set out to clean the beast that was parked outside my office building. With great effort I vacuumed the inside and detailed it like a professional. Then I hand washed the car till it shined of gold. When I picked up the dignitary that day, my car looked better than the day I drove it off the dealers lot.

A few years ago I invited my Father over for Christmas dinner, which he accepted.  Since he was getting up in age I offered to pick him up, which offer he gratefully accepted.  Christmas morning as I was getting ready to leave,  my wife asked if the car was clean. I replied,  “No, but my Dad doesn’t care about that type of thing.”  She answered back, “Yes, but it would be nice.” As I thought of her response I remembered how I had taken such effort to clean my car when I had to drive that “VIP” years earlier and I couldn’t help but think that my Father deserved to be respected by me far more than that man.

So, I painstakingly detailed the car till I felt it was fit for a man of his stature.  I stopped at the Carwash on my way to pick him up so that it shined just so! I know that my Dad didn’t care about the look of my car or weather it was perfectly clean on the inside.  I’m sure that he didn’t care if it shined like the sun or was covered in the dust of the day, but I didn’t clean it to impress him. I made it sparkle because that is the way you should present yourself, and your life,  to the greatest man who ever rode in your car.