On a recent trip along the Wild Atlantic Way in the West of Ireland, I happened upon a hitch hiker. I pulled over to pick her up but as I wasn't familiar with the hire car, I didn't realise that the doors had automatically locked. The hiker looked perplexed and probably thought it was a cruel trick to pull up beside her, lock all the doors and then drive off laughing. I scrabbled about the dashboard looking for the button to release the locks. There being no obvious picture clue I looked above me where there was a button I thought might have been indicating a door release in case of emergency.
I couldn't read the writing on it so I pressed it. Meanwhile my passenger had leaned behind her and opened the rear door with the handle.
The hitch hiker scrambled in looking flustered and wondering why I had called the emergency services before she'd even had chance to hijack the car.
I was also looking flustered as a voice from nowhere asked me if I wanted the Guarda, the fire service or an ambulance. I had no idea how to make the emergency call taker hear my desperate apology and explanationof the door release problem, so she reluctantly ended the call.
It got me thinking how we sometimes get ourselves in a situation we're not sure how to get out of. We scramble about for a solution and often worry other people as we try to solve the problem with no clear idea of which button to press.
As a Christian I've discovered how to activate a really helpful SOS service. I'm no longer surprised when God answers within 10 seconds. Sometimes the answer comes through another person opening a door, sometimes it's just a sense that I'm not alone in the difficulty.
If you're trapped in a situation and you're not sure how to get out, it's often a good idea to ask for help. You might not yet feel you can ask God, but please ask someone. Don't sit there panicking and feeling foolish. I felt silly pressing the wrong button in the hire car, but it was good to know there was help at hand if I needed it.
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