Traffic lights and traffic delays

As I embed my inner thoughts into this medium I am going to bring thoughts from the past to this forum, just to build a foundation of who I am. The following was something that I wrote to some friends after one particularly introspective drive to work one morning. I hope it challanges.

Why is the light green but the traffic still not moving?

I was sitting in a long line of traffic this morning, waiting for the light to turn green. When it finally did, I pondered the age old question of why the traffic can sit still for so long when obviously the leading cars are moving (I know Lena has queried me on this very thing in the past!!). Considering the physics and spatial arguments which actually answer the query posed, I thought of how applicable that quandary is to our daily walk.

As individual Christians we have many green lights, but are unable to move due to others before us. As a Church body we have green lights, but collectively move off in fits and starts. If all cars could anticipate the change and move off together, traffic would flow more smoothly and the frustration of missing the green and having to sit through another red light would not occur. But physically this is not practical as each car must regain the space between it and the car in front to travel safely, and the reaction time of each driver also adds to the delay.

As individuals in the Church body, if we did not require so much space between us to travel safely then we could move together with the green. If we were in joint anticipation of the green light then we would also be able to start moving at the same time. The challenge lies in having the security to travel closely with each other and having a common view of when the red light will disappear.

There are many further illustrations that can be followed from the traffic analogy, but just as road users need to study the road rule book, so too we as followers of Christ must also follow the rule book given to us. Only acceptance and adherence to one set of rules will allow all to travel in harmony.

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