The King’s Highway
You know, I don’t get to drive near as much as I used to, but when I do get the opportunity, I tend to enjoy it. OK, most of the time, anyway, but still, it is a blessing to be stuck in traffic, to have a easy ride to go wherever you go, or anything in between. It’s great to not have to walk to and fro in a days time just to get to church, but to hop in a car and in ten or fifteen minutes, be there. And in my online class, we have weekly devotionals. And what I will do, is simply share the next few days each week an “edited” Johnny Ray Version of these devotionals.
Week #1:
Johnny Ray took a long look at his speedometer before slowing down: 70 in a 60 zone. This was the fourth time in as many months that he had been stopped. How much bad luck can one guy have? When his car had slowed to 10 miles an hour, Johnny pulled over to the shoulder, but only partially. “Let the cop worry about the potential traffic hazard,” he thought. Johnny saw the cop step out of his car with his big ticket pad in his hand. Was that Todd? Todd Asaad from Church? Johnny sank farther down into the seat. This was worse than just getting a ticket. A cop catching a guy from his own church. A guy who was just a little eager to get home after a long Friday at the office. A guy he was about to play golf with tomorrow. Jumping out of the car, he approached his friend. This was really going to be embarrassing.
“Hi, Todd. Fancy meeting you like this.” “Hello, Johnny.” No smile. “You caught me red-handed--I was in a rush to see my wife and son.” “Yeah, I guess.” Todd seemed uncertain ... good maybe he won’t write a ticket. “I’ve seen some long days at the office lately. I’m afraid I bent the rules a bit, just this once.” Johnny toed at a pebble on the pavement. “Jenny said something about pork chops and rice tonight. That’s a great dish you know what I mean?” “I know what you mean but I also know that you have a reputation in our precinct.” Ouch. This was not going in the right direction. Time to change tactics. “What did you clock me at?” “Seventy. Johnny would you get back in your car please?” “Now wait a minute here, Todd. I checked as soon as I saw you. I was barely nudging 65.” The lie seemed to come easier with every ticket. “Please, Johnny, just get in the car.” Flustered, Johnny hunched himself through the still-open door. Slamming it shut, he stared at the dashboard. A fourth ticket--this wasn’t going to be good—he’d have to fight it in court.
The minutes ticked by. Todd scribbled away on the pad. Why hadn’t he asked for a driver’s license? Maybe with his bad record--and already knowing Johnny’s name--he didn’t need it? Whatever the reason, it would be a month of Sundays before Johnny ever sat near this cop again. And forget about golf. A tap on the door jerked his head to the left. There was Todd, the folded-up ticket in his hand. Johnny rolled down the window a mere two inches, just enough room for Todd to pass him the paper. “Thanks.” Johnny didn’t even try to keep the sneer out of his voice. Todd returned to his police car without a word. Johnny watched Todd as he climbed back into his squad car.
Johnny unfolded the sheet of paper. How much was this one going to cost? What was this? Some kind of joke? Johnny began to read: “Dear Johnny, Once upon a time I had a daughter. She was six when she was killed by a car. And as you can guess it was by a speeding driver. A fine and three months in jail, and he was free. Free to hug his three daughters. I only had one, and now I’m going to have to wait until heaven before I can ever hug her again. A thousand times I’ve tried to forgive that man. A thousand times I’ve thought I had. Maybe I did, but I need to do it again today. Pray for me. And be careful, Johnny, my wife and son are all I have left.” Todd
Now, I changed the names and cut off about two paragraphs short. Why? Why not? For one, I wanted to personalize. I know Todd. And what if I went speeding down the road and killed his child? It’s bad enough to sin and crucify Christ. But then to complicate things even further by causing a domino effect. Is it worth it?
Now, for those who really need the help in understanding just what a speed limit is, I am here for you. And so is the dictionary. And, I’ve even made it as simple as a click away by providing the link, should you want to verify the information I post here.
- The maximum speed at which a vehicle is legally permitted to travel, as within a specific area, on a certain road, or under given conditions.
- The maximum speed legally permitted on a given stretch of road.
- Regulation establishing the top speed permitted on a given road.
Seriously, I still have a few friends who are still holding back on their driving habits, and I really wasn’t go address it anymore, but I really wanted to these devotionals. But I thought of a few questions:
- In heaven, let’s say God has cars and streets and laws and all sorts of things, and there really is only one police officer, and that would be God, because he knows all… would you speed? And if you say no to up there, then why do it down here? I’m really curious for that answer.
But like a boomerang, this always comes back to hit me. Just because I don’t speed in my car, doesn’t mean I don’t speed in other areas of my life. Lack of faith, lack of concentration on school, virtually wanting to become addicted to my medication, unsure of whether I am using my illness as a “crutch”… my list could really go on. Wow… I need to get some scripture in here quick.
James 1:19-25
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
James 1:19 (JRV)
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry (and always doing less than the speed limit posted on the sign)…
OK, well, maybe the Bible doesn’t say that… but it does say QUICK to listen – SLOW to speak and SLOW to become angry. Now, as a math major, I counted one quick and two slows. Two minus one is one… so that would be one slow remaining. Another way you could look at the formula is two slows plus one quick… assigning numbers for slow and quick: 70 for quick and 35 for slow would then mean the formula would look something like this: 2(35) + 1(70) = 140. However, 140 wouldn’t be the total answer, because that is the sum of three numbers, so then the next step would be 140 divided by three, thus equaling 46.67. And why did I have to do this? I really don’t know… I think I need to go to bed now. Johnny OUT.
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