Shabbat Haye Sarah

If we truly believe that God is in charge of the world, then why do we honk at people while driving?
There is a way to relax and not live a life of anxiety. It’s called Emunah; The belief and knowledge that God runs the world. This constant awareness is a very powerful tool in life. It’s submitting yourself completely to Hashem. The more a person believes that God is in the driver’s seat, so to speak, the less one feels the need to be in control and the less one needs to honk at others or to manifest any other type of negative feelings, either towards others or towards oneself. God will do the honking for you. On the other hand, the less a person believes that God is doing the driving, the more one feels the need to be in control. It is hard enough to face life’s challenges, while at the same time trying to be in be in command of the environment around us as well. This feeling of having the “weight of the world” on one’s shoulders is quite debilitating.
Avraham had so many challenges in his life, and after conquering each hurdle, another one lay ahead. He was just coming back from showing the entire world that child sacrifices have officially been banned by God, when he is met with the news of Sarah’s death. But this did not dissuade Avraham. He mourned, he was saddened, but he still loved God knowing in his heart of hearts that Hakadosh Baruch Hu runs the Universe and the scope of our knowledge of life in general is very limited to the few years of our lives. We cannot stand far enough to see the vast picture of the world from creation to the end. Avraham was the first in our lineage of ancestors to accept full responsibility for one’s actions while basing life solely on one’s relationship with God: Emunah. He perfected himself through life’s experiences while being positive to others around him. He merely provided an explanation to those who asked him, and what he did, transformed the world around him.
So the next time you have the urge to honk, ask yourself “what am I in control of, the person in front of me who just cut me off, or myself?” If Hashem is in the driver's seat then not only are you not sitting anywhere near the horn, the drive is more enjoyable since you can use the carpool lane.