Spiritual Speed Limits

“Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God…” 2 John 1:9 [NIV]

I am a confessed recovering “speeder”. For many years, I considered my vehicle a time-machine. The faster it would go the further into the future I could get. Who needed a Star Trek “teleportor” when they had an accelerator? However, maturity and State Troopers (and insurance agents) have a way of changing such behavior. But a change in behavior isn’t necessarily a change in attitude.

Although there are forces which dictated such a change in behavior for me, I have also had a change in attitude, so that, today, I am (mostly) content to stay within the speed limits. What helped change my mind-set about speeding? It was the GPS. Often times, I was speeding because I didn’t know where I was. I had no way of gauging my progress, so I would speed up. It seemed easier to let time catch up with me (get there early) rather than risking getting their late. Suddenly, with a GPS, I knew exactly where I stood in relationship to my goal. Traveling became much less stressful.

“Life” has speed limits as well. Just as you can arrive too late, there is also a danger of getting “there” too soon. The Bible is filled with references about “walking” with the Lord; “walking” in the light. Learning to pace ourselves is a spiritual art. We don’t really have a spiritual GPS we can put on the dashboard of our life, but we do have something that is even better. We have Jesus, who is traveling WITH us. Anytime we see Him in our rearview mirror, we should realize that we are getting too far ahead and that it is time to slow down.

ONETHING: Traveling with Jesus is the best way to be assured you are obeying the spiritual speed limits.