Speedometer...

This story was posted on Girlfriends in God and I am posting it because I can relate. I had a car like this growing up in high school and college. It was big old red stationwagon that got me from point A to point B. I didn't look cool that's for sure. I didn't really care as long as I could go where I needed to go. Oh the memories I made!!

Here's the story.

Sharon Jaynes writes:

I met my husband at a Bible Study in college and quickly learned that he was a very frugal, industrious, and resourceful young man. On our first date, he came to pick me up in his ten-year-old Volkswagen Beetle, which he had purchased for $725. He says it was yellow. I say it was beige. Regardless of the color, this fine piece of machinery had several "remarkable" features.

I don't know if it was the weather or our excitement on our first date, but as soon as we got into the car, the windows fogged up. As we drove down Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, he asked, "Sharon, will you please get the defroster from the glove compartment and help me out so I can see?" I reached in the compartment to pull out the defroster - a small towel. Of course, I was impressed with his great wit and was delighted to ride around campus, wiping the front windshield as we went along. (Isn't it amazing the perspective we have of inconveniences when love is new?)

But perhaps the most remarkable feature of the VW was the speedometer. It didn't work. The speedometer broke when the odometer hit 200,000 miles and never left zero again.

"Steve," I asked, "If your speedometer doesn't work, how do you know how fast you are going?"

"Well," he answered, "I never know for sure how fast I'm going. I just have to pay attention to how fast cars around me are traveling and pace myself according to their speed. Besides, I can tell when to change gears and about how fast I'm going by how much the car shakes!"

Steve traveled around town and on highways, with no earthly idea of his exact speed. He was totally dependent on those around him in order to pace himself.

We were married ten months after our first date, on a hot August day, between the last session of summer school and fall semester. It was about 98 degrees the day that Steve drove from Charlotte to Rocky Mount, N.C. for our wedding weekend. (Oh, did I mention that the VW had no air-conditioning?) He left Charlotte in the wee hours on a Friday morning to avoid the mid-day heat. Because it was so early, there was virtually no traffic. Now that may seem like a dream come true for most people, but remember, Steve needed traffic to judge his own speed. His points of reference were missing, and he began to sweat.

About two hours into the trip, Steve saw a blue light flashing in his rear-view mirror and his heart sank as he realized he was being pulled over by a state patrolman.

"Where you going in such a hurry, young man?" the officer asked.

"Actually, sir, I'm on my way to get married," Steve replied.

The patrolman just smiled as he handed Steve the ticket and said, "Well, don't let this ruin your day."

When Steve told me his story, I was angry at that patrolman, but the truth is, cars are not intended to be driven without a speedometer, and neither are we. Our speedometer of course, is the Word of God. The Lord has written us this wonderful love letter to teach us how to drive safely through life. We aren't supposed to judge our pace or lifestyle by what others around us is doing. We aren't supposed to listen to the world's ideas for success, happiness, and fulfillment. We are to listen to God and allow His Word to be our guide.

Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." I'll admit that I have a tendency to listen to the world's wooing and pace myself according to what is going on around me. However, when we listen to the world's voices rather than to God's voice, when we pace ourselves according to the culture around us, we are headed for trouble, but when we pattern our actions according to God's Word and depend on the Holy Spirit to fuel our lives, we'll be headed safely in the right direction.