RED CARPET READY

Manual Transmission

BY DEANN ALAINE

Chuck had been sitting on a car lot for some time “on sale” since he has a manual transmission. Chuck is ten years old now, nearing 100,000 miles. Sometimes I feel like I’m nearing 100,000 miles! He’s good at getting me from point A to B; I’m not sure if he could get me to point Z, though.

Recently Chuck’s fan stopped spinning. This is an issue because when the fan stops, the heat from living in Orlando, Florida, becomes very relevant! One of the fan’s jobs is to blow the cool air from the air conditioner inside the car. If the fan isn’t working, the car can overheat! I probably shouldn’t say I know how to beguile this debacle, but I’ve worked out a system. I slyly turn off the car and coast to a red light. That’s a skill I’ve got in MY toolbox…impressive, I know. Next, I put down the windows and don’t turn Chuck back on until the light turns green. Then I buoy my ride, saying, “Chuck, good boy. Thanks for starting right up, buddy. I’ll get you fixed soon; I promise.”

I understand Chuck because I have just graduated to the 50s club, although my internal fan is still working in full force. Most of the time, I am grateful for that. But I have noticed subtle changes about myself. I feel as if my body is slowly downgrading from a Rolls Royce Drophead coupe to a Mini Coop—still cute, but with a little less giddy-up and a lot less class. Is it just me, or have you noticed that when one thing starts to go a little off-kilter, it is soon followed by a torrential downpour of a psycho season we try to dress up and call “transition”? That season makes me want to turn off the cruise control and switch to manual transmission so I can be in control!

You know what that’s like! When one reasonable situation comes up in life that is a little uncomfortable, then suddenly, you feel the mild heat that turns into a fiery furnace!!! This situation isn’t anything new. King Darius and Daniel have an awesome relationship at first, in Daniel 6, and then later in the same chapter, Daniel is in a den full of starving lions, sent there by his own friend and king! What a transition of events! There are lots of transition stories in the Bible; some take very quick turns, while others take 40 years to play out!

Even now I’m thinking about the widow at Zarephath and her son in 1 Kings 17:12, who were about to transition from life to death because they only had one meal left. And here comes Elijah saying, “Hey, can I have dinner?” (paraphrase version). I know in my own flesh I would have told him, “Well sure, then after you eat, we’ll all go up the STREET TO TACO BELL!!!” (Yes, I have a thing for Taco Bell! It’s that Mexican pizza!!!) Anyway, I’m so glad that widow didn’t act like ME!

How do I act around my family and friends when I am in a season of transition? YIKES—that’s a rough thought!!!! I have been known to treat my seasons of transition like Peter did. From, ‘Cut off his ear!’ to ‘No, I have nooo idea who that man is!!!’

But I’ve learned that asking the Lord to counsel me through transition is always the best way to proceed.

When my mind is kept or “stayed” on Him, my mouth is more prone to stay shut during transition and will protect my relationships ‘cause I won’t be barfing out whatever my emotions dictate to me! Self-control is a skill that can be best learned in transition! Trusting Him while He wants me in cruise control will help keep me from my own manual transition. He will protect me His way, which is far better than my own way of protecting myself by building up walls of fake protection, which the enemy loves!

Transition, whether long or short, is painful. It’s costly. But it has the potential to yield some of the best fruit that can stay at work within us for the rest of our lives. Surrender to the Counselor! His counsel is always 100% right. When the Lord calls me to a season of transition, He’s really saying, “DeAnn Alaine, YOU need to go to the mechanic, because your transmission is shot.”

Will the work take too long, in my opinion? YEP.

Will it cost more than what I want to pay? YEP.

Is the price I pay more than the price that Jesus paid?

NOPE. Not even close.

And, by staying surrendered to the Mechanic, not only will He repair me, but I’ll probably get some cool upgrades like a lift kit and a supercharger!!! Then when the Mechanic Stylist says I’m ready, you might see this upgraded mini coop rollin’ down the red carpet.

Dual Tailpipes and Blessings,

DeAnn Alaine

DeAnn Alaine is a comedienne whose mandate from the Lord is to bring joy to the world through stand-up comedy. She is the CEO of ComeeDeAnn Productions LLC and host of the award-winning carwash comedy show, Modwash Moments with DeAnn Alaine on SOLWIN TV. Visit www.deannalaine.com today!