The Shadow Self

When I was 17, I stole my own car.

I drove this hilariously awesome 81 Chevy Carpis Classic. Two tone brown. Bench seats in the front and back. It was a beast. Only had about 300 miles on it when I got it because my Mom bought it from a little old lady who had bought it new and only drove it to the grocery store.

I was a junior in high school, and I had gotten grounded for some reason. I don’t remember why now, but I’m 100% sure it was legitimate. The grounding was that I was not allowed to drive my car. Which meant I had to ride the bus to school.

17-year-old me did not find this acceptable. So I waited for my mom to leave for work, and I took my car out anyway. My mom didn’t find out until she got home from work that night and my car was gone.

She was understandably mad.

I say understandably because it’s pretty obvious that I was in the wrong here. My Mom bought me the car. I still lived in her house. And I broke her rules (to do whatever I had done to get grounded).

But you probably won’t be surprised to learn that I didn’t see it that way.

I was enraged. All that grew from a sense of entitlement – it didn’t matter where the car had come from; it was MINE. I deserved it. Why? Irrelevant. I DESERVED it, and I raged when my mom took it away from me as a punishment.

We’re going to talk about entitlement and privilege. We’re going to talk about how often we take God’s good gifts for granted and why that’s the path toward spiritual death.

We’ll see how God intervenes to save us from that pain – even when it feels like punishment.

Join us Sunday as we find hope and healing in the tragedies we suffer.