Traffic

I don't know why traffic is speaking to me so much lately. Jesus said that we would be accountable for every idle word we utter come judgment day (Matthew 12:36). If he were speaking in contemporary times, I think he would say that we will be held accountable for every word muttered in traffic. Don't think that because you refrain from saying your idle words out loud that you will be okay...see the Sermon on the Mount! This passage is not an issue of salvation. It simply teaches us that as Christ-followers, we don't get time off. Jesus won't be pocketed in our lives.

Coming back from taking my daughter to school this morning (yes, she missed the bus AGAIN) a jeep pulled out of the neighborhood, angling for the turning lane. However, he ended up basically parked in the straight lane, waiting for the light to turn. I was listening to a fabulous worship song on the radio and even tearing up when this guy pulled out into the road like an idiot. Oops, idle word. I was able to drive around him, as did the other seven cars behind me, while Mr. Jeep waited for the light to turn. I've made mistakes like that before; it is embarrassing, and I felt compassionate for the guy. But I also noticed the swell of irritation rising from within me--the same place that tears were rising up a moment before. I feel overwhelmed that Jesus would die for my sins, and overwhelmed that someone would pull into my lane of traffic. To quote James, "Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not be."

Jesus died for me before I was born, before I did anything wrong. He preemptively paid the price for my sins--the accidental ones, the intentional ones, the little ones, the ugly ones. So as I drove around Mr. Jeep I began to ask God for a heart that forgives preemptively. Before anything is done against me, I have filled my pockets with the rich forgiveness of God, ready to distribute. As I waited to turn into my neighborhood, the stream of traffic down the highway was like a pack of buffalo, thunderous and never-ending. I watched each car go by and thought about how dearly God loves each driver, even the few passengers. He knows their hurts and their dreams and their idle words. He has filled his pockets with mercy and grace and help, just waiting to hand out to those who ask.