Introspection: Grumpy Neighbors, Corrupt Judges, and Insurance Companies

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.

Grumpy Neighbors, Corrupt Judges, and Insurance Companies

Scripture:

For Jesus is not some high priest who has no sympathy for our weaknesses and flaws. He has already been tested in every way that we are tested; but He emerged victorious, without failing God. So let us step boldly to the throne of grace, where we can find mercy and grace to help when we need it most.

Hebrews 4:15-16 (The Voice)

I will lift my eyes to the Maker

Of the mountains I can't climb

I will lift my eyes to the Calmer

Of the oceans raging wild

I will lift my eyes to the Healer

Of the hurt I hold inside

I will lift my eyes, lift my eyes

To You

From "I Will Lift My Eyes" by Bebo Norman

Five weeks ago, I was involved in a car accident that wasn't my fault.¹ The accident itself was basically painless since nobody was injured; the time that followed, however, was marked with stress as I found myself at odds with the other driver's insurance company. The day after the accident, I rented a car and ended up driving it for several weeks afterward. Though the insurance company agreed to pay for the damages to the car, the claims investigator initially told me that the company would not pay the bill for the entire time of the rental. She argued was that my damaged car was drivable.

In a literal sense the investigator was right: I knew that if I started the car, put it in gear, and pressed the accelerator, it would indeed move. In fact, I did drive it to the body shop.² Still, I did not think it was a good idea to drive the car extensively. The car had a lot of front-end damage, and any internal damage could not be assessed because the hood was dented shut. I could not be sure that my car was actually safe to drive or that driving the car wouldn't result in any additional damage. Furthermore, it was fifteen days from the time I filed the claim to the time the investigator told me to take my car to the body shop, which I consider to be an excessive amount of time.

Driving a potentially dangerous car on a one-way trip to a body shop which is less than two miles from my house and accessible mostly by back roads is not the same as driving a potentially dangerous car all over town for more than two weeks.

It seemed as though I had a fight on my hands. I began to consider how I would convince the insurance company to pay my bill for the duration of the rental. Over and over, I rehearsed in my mind what I would say to the investigator: that I needed a reliable car to get to work every day and that she took an excessive amount of time to handle my claim. I considered filing a complaint with the Department of Insurance in my state. I even considered consulting a lawyer or at least mentioning a lawyer to the investigator.

As I said before, this whole ordeal has not brought out the best in me. In fact, I have seen traits in myself that typically disgust me when I see them in other people. As I prepared to do battle with the insurance company, I was reminded of a particular aspect of the nature of God.

Jesus once told a story about a man who has an unexpected visit from a friend late one night. The man has nothing to offer his friend to eat, so he walks to a neighbors house and knocks on the door, asking to borrow some bread. At first, the neighbor refuses, saying that everyone in the house is in bed and must not be disturbed. The man keeps knocking, so the neighbor eventually opens the door and helps him out.³ Typically we understand that the neighbor finally helps his friend because of the friend's persistence or shamelessness. In Jesus' culture, people were bound by a strict code of hospitality. If the neighbor refused to help his friend, he would have brought upon himself shame in the community.⁴

Jesus later told the story of a poor widow who has been wronged in some way and seeks out help from a local judge. This judge is corrupt to his very core and cares nothing about serving humanity, administering justice, or upholding the law - he cares only about himself. At first, he won't pay the widow any attention, but she returns to him day after day, seeking justice. Eventually the judge realizes that the widow is not going to back down, so he decides to hear her case.⁵ He knows that the widow is desperate, so he fears that she will get violent with him, that continuing to ignore her will make him look bad, or that she will wear him out with her constant nagging.⁶

A lot of times, Jesus' parables are meant to show us what God is like. These two parables, on the other hand, show us what God is not like. God is not like a sleepy neighbor who only helps someone out of fear of public shame. God is not like a corrupt public official who only helps someone to protect his own interests. Furthermore, God is not like an insurance company that seeks to give people as little as possible. When we have a request for God, we do not have to nag God, shame God, bargain with God, manipulate God, present God with an eighteen-bullet-point argument, threaten God, or otherwise attempt to coerce God into giving us what we want, not that such actions would actually have any effect on a righteous, all-knowing, all-powerful God. The truth is that, when we have a request for God, all we have to do is to ask.

Jesus once asked a rather absurd question: "Which father among you would give a snake to your child if the child asked for a fish? If a child asked for an egg, what father would give the child a scorpion?" He goes on to say that if flawed human beings know how to properly provide for their children, then we can count on God to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask.⁷ Our God is a loving parent who enjoys giving good things to His children. The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews points out that Jesus Christ, the Incarnate God, can empathize with us because He too was human. Because of this, we can boldly go to God to request help.

This is not to say that God will always give us exactly what we want. Sometimes we want things that are not the best for us, and God knows what we actually need better than we do. Sometimes we even find ourselves in situations in which we don't even know what to ask in prayer. According to St. Paul, in times like these, the Holy Spirit carries to God the very groans of our heart.⁸

Ultimately there was no battle with the insurance company, for the claims investigator decided to pay my rental bill for the duration of the rental. As always, I worried in vain. Still, the whole ordeal served as a bittersweet reminder of the gracious nature of God. My car is back in my possession, and everything is settled with the insurance company, the body shop, and the rental company. I can finally put this ugly chapter of my life behind me. I hope that you, the reader, will remember that you can go to God with anything, knowing that God loves you and wants only what is best for you.

Notes:
1 - See my introspection "Screeching Tires and Grace."
2 - I also moved it across the street from my house to mow the grass. I was honest with the investigator about the times I actually drove the car, hence the resulting dispute.
3 - To read the Parable of the Friend at Night in its entirety, see Luke 11:5-8.
4 - Shane Hipps. "A Scorpion and the Egg." Mars Hill Bible Church Podcast, 07/25/10.
5 - To read the Parable of the Unjust Judge in its entirety, see Luke 18:1-8. For more thoughts about this parable, see my sermon "Not Like Us."
6 - William Barclay. The Parables of Jesus. 1999, Westminster John Knox Press. p. 115
7 - Luke 11:11-13 (CEB quoted)
8 - Romans 8:26

The Importunate Neighbour was painted by William Holman Hunt in 1895. The picture of my car was taken by me at my alma mater the day I got it back.


If you have any feedback, thoughts, stories, or even arguments to contribute, please leave comments.