God's presence on the bridge between Tampa and St Petersburg

We can practice the presence of God everywhere and as Regina Sara Ryan so beautifully says: "“To make every activity a prayer, to make every moment a sacrament is what we are here for.”

I came back from Tampa and was on the  4 mile long bridge to St Petersburg when I saw that my last fuel bar was blinking which I had not seen before, meaning my gas tank had never been this empty. I did not know how much gas was left in my tank and how far I would be able to go. My blood pressure rose and my body tensed up. I saw myself running out of gas and standing on the sideline on the bridge… 

I took a deep breath and remembered the “I love you” prayer which brought me back into the present moment. I consciously relaxed my body, breathed deeply and realized that I had just harmed myself by going into the unknown future, projecting the worst—I experienced unpleasant physical symptoms for an event in the future that might not ever happen. How insane is that!!! But don’t we all live this way more or less?

Breathing in God’s love, I thought of you all, planning how I was going to share this realization from the safe place of my home. I projected a good outcome, saw that I would make it to a gas station and even planned calmly what I would do if my car stopped on the bridge. And I realized that no matter what happened, I would be safe in God’s care. I also realized that I could only act in the moment I would run out of gas and not do anything in the present moment to prevent it. The only thing I could do was drive safely and use as little gas as possible by driving the speed limit. AND pray!!! I arrived safely at the gas station and I am writing this from the safety of my home.

Stay present no matter where you are in life and you will experience God's Grace.

Blessings,

Bettina