Travel Lesson

Car trips with crying babies do not bring out the best in marriages. Add pouring rain to the mix and you have a travel experience that everyone would rather forget. 

Early in our marriage, we were on just such a trip, headed home for the Christmas holidays. Our six month old wailed in the back seat and we had at least four more hours before we would arrive at the grandparents. 

My husband had just gotten off a long shift at the hospital and he was not in a patient mood with the baby, the rain or me--and his driving proved it. 

"Honey, you're driving a little fast for this rain and the traffic," I said, trying to sound helpful. My husband growled something that I couldn't understand and that was probably a good thing. 

Well, Lord, that didn't work and I'm really nervous. Could you please speak to my husband in a way he will understand? I am so thankful God hears silent urgent prayers from the heart--in the rain--with crying babies in the backseat. 

In just a few minutes, the familiar flashing red lights appeared in our rearview window. My husband got a speeding ticket. As we started our trip once more, I didn't say a word but I did thank God silently for intervening. 

I learned a huge lesson that afternoon. God is at work in my husband and He doesn't need me to nag or gripe at him. My man needs my respect. He doesn't need me to do double duty as his personal Holy Spirit.

I'm reading an excellent book on this subject if you want to read more. For Women Only: What You Need to Know about the Inner Lives of Men by Shaunti Feldhahn is full of practical statistics about what men really think.