An Idea Whose Time Will Never Come

I was driving down the road, enjoying the wooded hillsides as the trees are just starting to show their fall color. Suddenly, I noticed the brake lights of the car in front of me flash on. In fact, all of the cars around me seemed to be slowing down. And then I saw it, off to the side of the road, a Police car.

You know the feeling. The adrenaline shoots into your system. Your heart starts pounding faster. Your right foot moves toward the brake pedal while your eyes quickly shift to the speedometer. “What is the speed limit here, anyway?” Off to the right is a sign: 45 mph. Your speed: 55 mph. “Oh no. Oh, please, don’t let him stop me…” (or something to that effect)

Fortunately for me, the flashing lights never appeared in my mirror. But as I continued toward home, I came up with a practical idea that I’m certain will never be used.

You see, I’m one of those people who actually try to obey the speed limit. The main reason I’ve never gotten a speeding ticket in 38 years of driving is that I rarely speed, and when I do, it’s even more rarely on purpose.

(Confession time: I get a perverse sense of satisfaction as I drive southbound into Dunellen on Washington Ave., tap my brakes to go from 40 to 25 mph, and imagine the frustration of the rapidly moving cars behind me as they are forced to slow down. I get an even greater and more perverse sense of satisfaction when one of them decides to zip past me on the right, only then to discover the Dunellen cop watching from down the road. I know, I preach grace and mercy, but sometimes justice can be sooooo satisfying – at least when it happens to someone else!)

Even though the signs say “Speed Limit,” we all treat them like they mean “Suggested Speed. Don’t let us catch you going more than five or ten miles per hour faster than this!”

So, here’s my idea. It’s simple, elegant, and can almost certainly be accomplished with existing technology: Install a chip in every car that receives a radio signal telling it the posted speed limit from transponders installed in every major highway. Then, program the chip such that it the car simply will not go faster than the posted speed limit!

Think of the benefits!

• Reduced traffic accidents because nobody is speeding
• Reduced fatalities from accidents, because they will happen at lower speeds
• Increased fuel economy with an enormous saving to our nation’s fuel supply, thus reducing our dependence on foreign oil
• No speeding tickets
• Reduced insurance premiums

“Ah,” you say. “But your forgetting the liabilities! People sometimes need to exceed the posted limit in order to perform emergency maneuvers.” Easily solved. Design the car’s computer so that when you floor the gas it automatically overrides the speed restriction, but only for a limited time or distance.

“But what about the towns that rely on revenue from tickets?” Come on, you’re really clutching at straws.

And the cost? Even if we only did major highways, and phased in the chips over a period of years, the benefits would more than pay for themselves.

But as I said, it will never happen. Even you probably don’t want it to happen, do you? Most people wouldn’t. Why? Because most of us believe we have a right to speed. Even if we don’t do it often, we want to know that we could. I don’t want ANYONE else to control what I do in my car.

I’ve come to believe that our sinful nature is most dramatically displayed in the mundane things we do. Things like driving, where we know the law, but think of ourselves as just slightly above the law – where we’ll cross the line just enough that we figure we won’t get caught.

And we rationalize:  “Everyone is going faster. I’m just going with the flow of traffic.” (Eve ate the fruit, why shouldn’t I? The other kids cheat on their tests, and I really need to pass this class. No one my age is a virgin – I feel like such a loser!)

One of my favorite definitions: RATIONALIZE = Rational Lies

Ultimately, sin is our innate desire to set ourselves above God. It’s demonstrated in our constant efforts to set ourselves to set ourselves above the authorities that God has placed over us.

Thanks be to God for his forgiveness, freely given in Christ Jesus.

As Christ-followers, we’re called to surrender our entire life to him. But sometimes, in order to surrender it all, we need to let go one piece at a time. So, today, let’s YIELD just a little more our lives to Christ’s control. “Jesus – take the wheel.”