December 6, Advent 2C (Luke 3:1-6)

One of my dad’s most treasured Christmas gifts is his portable Global Positioning System device. He has come to believe in his GPS device, and he constantly evangelizes the rest of us about our need to get one. Even if he knows exactly where he’s going, you probably won’t see him driving without his destination locked in and his route highlighted. He even uses it when he goes on walks.

I have a love-hate relationship with GPS. While I appreciate its direction and its knowledge of routes that aren’t familiar to me, I dislike the way it corrects me. The “lady” in the machine seems to get a bit snippy when I don’t go where she tells me to and she’s forced to recalculate my route. After perceiving that condescension in her voice a few too many times—I often think I know a better route than she does—I’m ready to throw her out the driver-side window.

Sometimes I think direction is an easier pill to swallow than correction. It takes a measure of humility to allow someone to tell you what to do. Being corrected by someone is like being told what to do twice. Or three times.