Oh, my, did I ever rush to work that day back in 1980. I was on afternoon shifts that month, and often I made my lunch bag up at the last minute before leaving my apartment. Unfortunately, it meant I tended to speed on my way there. My commute was along a secluded road rarely used by the public—but still, the law is the law.
Thou shalt not speed.
When a siren sounded behind me, I pulled over and stopped.
Instead of thinking about whether I was going to get a ticket or not, I worried about being late for work. Instead of considering how much I drove over the speed limit, I hoped the officer wouldn’t take up too much of my time chastising me.
He asked to see my driver’s license, and then he asked me if I knew how fast I was going.
I looked at him sheepishly and pointed to my lunch bag sitting in the passenger seat. “I have no idea. I guess I should make my lunch earlier so I don’t have to rush to get to work on time. I was hoping to beat the train. How fast was I going?”
Because I was fixated on trying to cross the railroad tracks before the oncoming train arrived, I had no idea how fast I was going.
The officer took his time.
The RCMP officer looked at my license. For. A. Long. Time.
Then he handed it back to me and told me how fast I was going.
Ouch. I was caught going WAY over the speed limit.
Because I was sorry…
But because I was shocked at my own negligence, and because I seemed as sorry as I truly was, he let me off with only a warning. My driving record remained clean. And I made my lunches WAY ahead of time from then on.
Thank you, dear police officer.
*Oh, my, what a wonderful WAY Jesus cleansed my sin-stained record in life too. Like all sinners—like everyone—I was a headed for disaster. There’s no way I could make it safely over the crossing into Heaven without the precious pardon God gave me through His only Son’s blood. I was a train wreck on two lead feet.
Thank you, dear Jesus.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Psalm 103:11-12 NIV
The Rush:
I was rushing through my life
With no heed to God’s sacrifice
When my sins snuffed out the light
And I groped for help and sight
~
I was rushing through my life
When I stumbled in the night
And fell before the King of Light
To receive newness through Christ.
~ wlm
Praise the LORD, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits–
who forgives all your sins…
Psalm 103:2-3 NIV
When the broken tuck their heart in Jesus, they find wholeness.
It wasn’t until 1983 that I truly tucked my heart in Jesus’ hands.
I’ve written this in response to the FMF prompt: Rush.
* I confess I took more than 5 minutes to complete this. The asterisk marks where I ran out of time.
And it was inspired by my dear blogging friend, Heidi, who writes beautiful, heartfelt poetry and prose. She, too, has tasted of the grace of an officer and tasted the Grace of a good God. You can read about it here: Heidi Viars
I’m nosy-to-know if you’ve ever rushed through life?
Grace Blessings ~ Wendy Mac
What a good God we serve, sweet Wendy! He knows our offenses. He is patient with our growth. He is kind in our restoration. Thank you for your faithful reminders and heart toward Him. Hope we get to slow down some and marvel this Christmas season about His goodness toward us 🤗
Thank you, dear Heidi. Amen to marveling in His goodness towards us. <3
My default setting was “rush” until 2006, when rushing almost killed me. I’m comfortable now in second gear. 🙂
Amen, Bill, to being comfortable in second gear. 🙂 It’s the best place to be.
Beautiful post and poem, WendyMac.
Different for me.
The safety valves are welded closed,
the throttle’s open wide.
It may well be that I explode,
but I’ll take what will betide.
Breath comes hard in the dark night,
and it’s worse unto the day,
and thought I strive to see calm light,
war is the state of play.
Somewhere there must be a place
of gentle, restful ease,
but I shall not see such grace
till my moment of release.
‘Till then it shall be hammer down,
and speed shall be my thorny crown.
Thank you, Andrew, for blessing me with your poetry. Keep hammering out your writing, you have a gift. 🙂 May His mercy and love bring calm and rest to your spirit each day that you have remaining, dear brother.
Oh, how thankful I am that He always receives us when we stumble and fall at His feet! Thank you for sharing your heart with us, dear Wendy. Your poetry and Scripture photos are such an encouragement to me!
Thank you, dear Bettie. Nature and Scripture are healing balm for our souls in this unpredictable world. I crave His Word each morning. <3