BOY THAT'S DUMB
Have you ever thumbed your nose at authority? Have you ever stood toe to toe with someone who could hurt you badly, and then slapped them upside the head? Have you ever done something stupid enough to send a van full of teenage boys into a spasm of gasping guffaws? Well, this past weekend we all had a front row seat to just such an action and I'm still shaking my head thinking about it.
On Sunday, we were making our way back from Prince Edward Island. We had a wonderful weekend of challenge and praise at a youth conference held at Maritime Christian College. All was right with the world. On this particular part of the highway, just outside of Moncton, New Brunswick, we were enjoying four lanes of smooth running, nonstop 110 km/hr travel. The day was sunny. The guys were happy. The road was straight. I was looking forward to being reunited with my family after a few days of separation. Suddenly, the boys started making "noises" of concern. They had spied a police cruiser immediately behind us. If you aren't familiar with the way teenage boys communicate, "noise" is a much more appropriate term than "words". They moan and grunt and scream amidst choruses of digestive tract announcements of assorted varieties and strengths. I sometimes wonder if anthropologists waste their money crawling into the remotest parts of the rain forest to observe primitive human behaviour when they could pretty much do the same research by travelling with a youth group for a weekend! Anyway, I seem to have digressed.
What I found interesting was that the sight of a police cruiser automatically created a herd instinct of panic among my passengers as several times they told me about the "presence" behind us. Either the boys in our van had an extreme respect for the law, or a persistent fear of being caught. I decided it was best not to pursue that line of thought. Instead, I told them that there was nothing to worry about since we were doing the speed limit and everyone had their seat belts on. We were a shining example of law-abiding citizens. Therefore, the police were our friends, our protectors and not folks to be feared. Truth is though, having a police car immediately behind you, does create a bit of tension even for someone as innocent as I! But my tension was soon relieved as the cruiser passed us by. Seems that whatever they were looking for, they found.
But now we come to the interesting point of this story. Approaching in the passing lane behind us was a grey car with a grey-haired lady behind the wheel. She stayed beside us for a bit and had to have seen the police car immediately ahead of us. After all, the car had "Police" written across the entire width of the trunk in letters that were very large and very clear. No one could mistake this vehicle for anything other than it's official designation. Yet, this lady decided to zoom by them - even though such actions would entail exceeding the speed limit.
Silence briefly filled the van as we watched the drama unfold before us. There she goes, passing the police cruiser easily doing 10 km/hr over the posted speed limit. How would the police respond? I am happy to say that these boys in blue were doing their job with great panache! They also pulled out into the passing lane and matched speed with the grey-haired lady with the grey car. Moments later, the show was over as the lights went on and the two started to make their way to the side of the highway. All that was left was the head shaking and the choruses of "boy was she dumb!" Moments later, she would be receiving a $90 speeding ticket and perhaps have three points off her licence. She could just as effectively set fire to her wallet. Instead, she decided to thumb her nose at the police.
Ok, so what do we learn from the
misadventures of this misguided motorist?
- It's not a good idea to thumb our noses at authority, especially when that authority can hurt you! The guys in my van clearly understood this principle. Don't dare the police to get you by breaking the law in
front of them because you'll pay. Simple principle, right?
Scripture tells us "The LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts."(1 Chron. 28:9) In other words, God isn't just driving behind us watching twenty-four hours a day, He's also in our heads and knows, no, searches every heart to understand what the motivations are behind our actions!
More to the point, His authority extends beyond all other authority and we cannot escape. But, does that stop us from thumbing our noses at Him? We can willfully break His laws without giving it another thought. At some point, we will be pulled over and have to pay the price. But, unfortunately, no one will have the kind of money needed to pay that fine - not even Bill Gates! The only way to deal with our sin is to place our lives in the hands of the One who has already paid - and that's Jesus, of course. He paid the price for our sins so that we won't have to. If you need more information on Jesus and what He has done for you, please email me.
- Sometimes, as Christian, we thumb our noses at another authority in this world, namely satan. We do it by driving by him and taunting him as we toy with temptation instead of fleeing from it. While it's absolutely true that we have total victory over the evil one through our association with Christ, it's also equally true that satan has lots of speed traps set up along life's road. He's waiting to catch us in
a weak moment. It's also true that he is more than willing to provide us with an unlimited number of vehicles designed to encourage reckless abandon at irresponsible speeds. Unfortunately, many a Christian has crashed and burned as a result.
The best way to live our lives is by realizing the "Presence" behind, beside, in front, and inside of us. And, in response to that presence, desire to drive through life responsibly. It's just plain dumb to drive while taking life and death risks. To do so is to ask to be pulled over and stopped in our tracks!
Prayer
Lord, God, thank You for watching over us. Thank You for taking us off the side of the road and putting us back on the highway to Heaven by sending Jesus to pay for our tickets. Lord, we confess before You that we have often toyed with sin and temptation. Sometimes, we have even thumbed our noses at Your authority and law. Forgive us, and guide us down life's highway. Better yet, help us to get out of the way and allow You to take the wheel! Amen!
