And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. -Psalm 9:10

A staple of defensive driving courses since its release in 1950 is Disney’s animated short Motor Mania. What’s amazing about it is how relevant it still is today for its insight into human nature.

In it, Goofy is the mild-mannered Mr. Wheeler, a working man getting ready to go to work. But once behind the wheel, he transforms into a devilish (horns and all) character called Mr. Wheeler, who drag races from stoplight to stoplight, drives dangerously in traffic, endangers pedestrians, and generally puts his needs over that of everyone else on the road. Just moments earlier, he was one of those very pedestrians he is now endangering!

Sound familiar? The act of getting behind the wheel unlocks otherwise buried urges for control and dominance when we’re suddenly granted more power than any human could have when not behind the wheel. Behind the wheel, we pilot multi-ton battering rams that can literally change or end people’s lives around us.

Human nature’s fight for control and dominance over one another—and straying from God’s lane—is the same since Adam and Eve. In Genesis, Jacob’s name change to Israel (meaning “wrestles with God”) says it all.

It takes a conscious effort to not let our inner Mr. Wheeler take over in life to get over one another for our own benefit. Who’s driving in your life right now, Mr. Walker or Mr. Wheeler?

If we trust God with the wheel of our lives, He will not disappoint us in our journey—or the destination.