CHANGE THE CHANNEL

The other day, I was driving down the FDR Drive—those of you who live in New York City know exactly what that’s like. That highway will test your faith! You’ve got to pray and drive at the same time. Well, someone cut me off in traffic, just swerved right in front of me. No signal, no warning. Just like that.

Now I want to be honest with you, I got angry. I began imagining what I might say if I were ever to come face-to-face with that driver. Have you ever been there? Rehearsing your comeback, imagining how you’ll tell someone off, thinking, “That’ll show them!”

But then, right in the middle of all those thoughts swirling in my head… my favorite song came on the radio. Without even thinking, I started humming along. Then I was singing. And before I knew it, I was smiling. That whole incident, the anger, the frustration, the imagined argument, was gone. Like it never happened.

Friends, that’s the power of shifting your focus. See, I didn’t change the traffic. I didn’t change the driver who cut me off. I didn’t go chasing justice down the highway. All I did was change the station, and that changed me.

Too often, we let small moments steal big blessings. Someone says something rude. A coworker ignores us. A friend disappoints us. And suddenly, we’re carrying it. All day. Sometimes all week. We replay the scene in our minds. We think of better comebacks. We let it sour our mood, cloud our judgment, and even distract us from prayer.

But listen to what Scripture says. In Ephesians 4:26, St. Paul writes: “Be angry, but do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” In other words, don’t carry it. Don’t let it sink into your spirit and make a home there. Don’t give a moment of frustration permission to linger and steal your peace.
Friends, next time someone cuts you off or life goes off track, don’t let anger take the driver’s seat. Don’t let it steal your peace. Just turn the channel. Tune your heart to gratitude. Hum a melody of grace. Whisper a prayer of thanksgiving. And you’ll find that even in the chaos of the highway, God will give you a melody of peace that no one can take away.

Bishop Mesrop Parsamyan
July 24, 2025