First Car
When I was 15 years old, I had a dream. I had a job and a little bit of money, and my dream was to figure out a way to convert that money into my first car.
And not just any car, mind you. My dream was to buy a used silver 1988 two-door hatchback 4-cylinder Dodge Daytona. That very car had been sitting for a few months on the dusty back lot of the used car lot in the town where I lived, and I thought that it was just about the coolest thing on four wheels. I had shown it to my friends, I had shown it to my parents, and even though nobody else seemed all that impressed, I was hooked.
Long story short, one day during track practice I had gone running in the direction of the car lot to check on my dream car... and it was gone.
That was pretty tough, until I walked out into the parking lot of the school after track practice and there was my mom sitting there in that car!
(And, might I say, God bless that woman.)
I won’t kid you. The day that I, with the help of my long-suffering parents, was able to buy that car was one of the great moments of my young life. I loved that car and I drove it for years.
But as I look back, I realize that that car really wasn't all that great. Even when it was brand new, it was just another gutless hatchback, and it was far from new by the time it ended up on that used car lot.
The truth is that the memories of that car stick with me not because of what that car was, but because of what that car was to me.
In reality, my first car was a used, gutless, uncomfortable, 4-cylinder hatchback that had been sitting on a dusty back car lot for months because nobody else wanted it. But for me, none of that mattered. For me, it was exactly what I wanted—dents, scratches, and all.
I take you on that walk down memory lane because I want to offer you some encouragement.
In the used car lot of life, most of us don't really feel like a showroom quality product. Maybe because of our dents and scratches, maybe because we're pretty sure we were never that great to begin with, or maybe just because nobody ever seems to take a second look at us.
But here's the thing that changes everything: Some things in life stick with you not because of what they are, but because of what they are to you.
And for God, you are one of those things. You may not look like much to you, but to Him, you are exactly what He wants—dents, scratches, and all.
The Bible says that God so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him will have real life with Him forever.
That includes you, dude.
