Words of Worth

You Steer Where You Stare

October 12, 2014

“If you stare Mailboxat the mailbox you’re going to drive smack into it. Notice it enough so you don’t hit it but don’t stare at it and smash my car up.”– Mr. Hsu, Driver’s Ed Instructor

“You steer where you stare. When trouble arises you must look where you want to go.” -Gary Magwood, former national car racing champion and instructor

Once we get this down then the rest will follow—namely your car!

It sounds way too simple but research suggests we automatically steer in the direction we have locked our vision.  We all could probably tell stories which testify to this.  Have you ever stared at an exit ramp on a highway, knowing full well it was the wrong exit to take but lo and behold you took it anyway?  You steered where you stared. Have you ever stared at a car bumper directly in front of you and then drove right into it?  You steered where you stared. Once I was in a funeral procession and glued my eyes on a car in front of me only to end up at the wrong cemetery because I was in the wrong funeral procession! I steered where I stared.  It works!  And it’s not a bad thing if where I am staring is where I want to, or need to steer; if the end destination is the right place to be.

Apparently this concept of steering where you stare is a great winter driving tip. You have to look way down the road and on the bumper of the car in front of you lest you crash into it.  When turning a corner, you must look around the bend and not at the curb or the pedestrians on it.

This is good advice not only for our driving safety but for our spiritual well-being.  We need to fix our gaze on God so that we will steer our lives in the direction He wants us to go.  What safer way to navigate our way in the paths of life?  You steer where you stare!

 “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Hebrews 12:2 (NIV)