The Spiritual Mechanic

Once there was a man who had a beautiful new car. The owners manual assured the driver that his car would serve him faithfully for years if he would treat it properly. Despite the assurance of having a sound car for years, the man mistreated his vehicle. He “peeled out”when the light turned green, he raced, he stopped short. He didn’t change the fluids regularly, and never got a tune up.

His carelessness and hard driving damaged the transmission of the car, and his speeding severely damaged the engine. Realizing he had damaged the car, he resolved to drive more carefully, but no matter how carefully he drove, his careful driving did not repair the damage ‘under the hood’. To have the repairs done, he needed to bring the car in to the dealer for proper reparations, which he eventually did. It was costly, but the car was eventually restored to excellent condition.

We can regret our sins; and we can, and should turn from sinful ways. But when we sin we damage our souls. While we should certainly direct our lives properly, no amount of careful living repairs the damage we have done to our souls through sin. The repair of our souls is affected by God working in us through the sacrament of Holy Communion. This is the primary reason we come to church on Sundays. For our Lord, the ultimate spiritual mechanic, is the only one who can repair our broken souls; and he Himself covers the cost of the repair. We need only bring ourselves to Him.

Der Tavit