I am in love with Bertha. She is amazing because she understands me. With a simple love tap she guides me to wherever I need to go. Since I got my car I have developed a sort of love affair with her – she is my Global Positioning System or GPS. The saying “Location location location brings a new meaning to my life at Pepperdine. Think about the university’s geography. The closest affordable nail salon is 15 minutes away, and the closest Target, which is through Malibu Canyon, and south on highway 101, is 30 minutes. In my hometown these special resources are, in worst case scenario, seven minutes with traffic catching every red light, even if there is an accident. The simplest trips may take longer if I do not have the guiding voice to remind me of which exit to take. I originally cringed at the thought of having a raving woman shouting orders at me wherever I go. I already have my share of backseat drivers; enough to know it is not my idea of a joy ride. Nevertheless, I tried it and I must say that with Bertha, she just gets me. I get all of the directions necessary without any of the emotional trauma involved. No judgment. No lectures. Just directions. To think, people used to consult others about how to navigate to their destinations of choice. Even retro storylines on TV shows exhibit a life when someone would accompany you to your destination to make sure you found it. Today we need some form of GPS just to survive; this fact made me realize how dependant we are on directions. Much is the same for my spiritual life. I know my destination. The road to get there is not so clear. On the map of my life the PCH and Malibu Canyon of my faith are Trust and Obedience, and at this crossroad of Pepperdine life all I see are taillights in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Even though the days of having a nice person accompany me to my destination is an extinct notion within our social spectrum. I have realized that I have that luxury within my spiritual life. I find it in my friends. Whether it’s an impromptu mini-conference in a central meeting place or a one-on-one breakfast date in the law school cafeteria, they serve as the turn-by-turn voice that I’ve learned to appreciate. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit guides me when I choose to follow and turns me back around when I am going the wrong direction: Recalculating God says. At the end of my time here I pray that He tells me, You have reached your destination.” If I could only program His guide and the closest Pinkberry into Bertha I would be set.
Pepperdine Graphic