Last week I headed for home after my swim workout at South Dakota State University. After I turned onto highway 14, I was surprised to see flashing red and blue lights in my rearview mirror.
I checked the speedometer and I wasn’t going over 55, so I was thoroughly confused, but I pulled over and waited for the officer to come to my window.
“Ma’am, Stadium Road is only 25 miles per hour,” he stated. In a flash, I understood. This was campus police for SDSU and I had been pushing it a bit on the road leaving campus. I hadn’t done it intentionally, but I was speeding.
He asked for my license, registration, and proof of insurance. I handed them over and waited while he went back to his vehicle to see if I checked out. When he returned, he handed me my papers and told me he was just going to give me a verbal warning this time.
Whew! No ticket. I was so relieved. I thanked him and promised to watch my speed in the future.
And I have. I’ve even set my cruise for 25 mph when I go down that road because I don’t want to accidentally go faster and get stopped again. I know that next time I probably won’t be so lucky.
Warnings are good. They alert us to what we’ve done wrong and they give us a second chance before we suffer the painful consequences of our actions.
It would be irresponsible for me to speed down campus roads just because I didn’t get a ticket on one occasion. The limits are there for a reason and I need to obey them, even if it feels like I’m moving at a snail’s pace.
We all need to heed the warnings we receive from various sources in our lives. Maybe our boss warns us that we need to improve some aspect of our job performance so we don’t get fired. Maybe our spouse warns us that they’re getting tired of some aspect of our behavior and they want to see changes. Maybe our friend warns us that they’re tired of us showing up late all the time and they aren’t going to invite us anymore if we don’t improve.
If we don’t heed people’s warnings, we may have to suffer the consequences.
As Christians, we have a book that is full of warnings. The Bible tells us how we need to act if we’re going to show our love for God and others. If we ignore those warnings, we may have to suffer physical or emotional consequences. Thankfully, there is forgiveness and grace when we fail, but paying attention to the Bible’s warnings can help us enjoy happier lives as we interact well with the people in our lives and the God who loves us.
Let’s pay attention to the warnings we receive and make a conscious decision to slow down and do what’s right.
If we do, we won’t have to be afraid to look in the rearview mirror. We can move freely through life, confident that we’ll get where we’re going without any trouble.
“A wise warning to someone who will listen is as valuable as gold earrings or fine gold jewelry.” (Proverbs 25:12 New Century Version)
Have you ever gotten a warning for something? How did it make you feel? How can focusing on God help you heed warnings (from people or the Bible) and live well?