OUT ON BUSINESS

I was a twenty-something in my first job when I first drove a company car—a hilarious experience for my new co-workers. I’d just been hired by a small daily newspaper, so fresh out of college that I didn’t even own a car. When the editor assigned me a local story, he gave me the keys to the newsroom car.
“You drive a stick-shift, don’t you?” he asked. 
“Uh, no,” I admitted. I’d learned to drive on an automatic.
He grabbed a piece of paper and drew a diagram of where to push the gear shift. “And be sure to put in the clutch when you do,” he added.  “Remember, easy out on the clutch.” The clutch was on a second diagram.

First week on the job, and I was sure I’d die in a traffic incident on my first assignment.

“Easy out on the clutch” wasn’t all that easy.  As I bucked out of the parking lot, I provided plenty of entertainment for those gathered at the second story newsroom window.

I was reminded of that young-adult nightmare by this row of empty “company car” parking places I saw a few weeks ago. Whatever company was using those spaces, all were out “doing business.”

At this time of year when millions are out “doing business” at multiple businesses—that is, shopping—maybe this photo is a reminder of priorities. If our first commitment is to our heavenly Father’s business, we need to use the resources He’s made available to us for His purposes.  I think Jesus as a lad demonstrated that when He stayed behind at the Temple after his family’s caravan started back to Nazareth after the Passover pilgrimage.

“Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” He told his anxious earthly parents when they finally found Him (Luke 2:49). Even as a youth, He was focused on the Father’s calling on His life.

The real “company car” for Christmas isn’t Santa’s sleigh. It’s the powerful message from Heaven that was temporarily parked in a Bethlehem cattle feeding trough. It’s the one that reminds us, “Get out of the parking lot and carry on with the Father’s business.”