On our recent trip out east, I was surprised when we came upon road signs that stated, “It can Wait – Text Stop Ahead.” I have never seen a sign like this before. Of course, I have heard about the “Don’t text and drive” slogan, but I don’t think I have ever seen roadside places to park while you catch up on your texting. Certainly, that has taken safe communications to the next level.
I do have a friend who refuses to text and drive. He actually pulls off the road on the shoulder and does his texting from the side of the road. Then, when he is finished with his communication, he pulls back out onto the road and continues on his way. Even in this world of warnings, he is the only one I know who actually waits to do his phone work from a stopped position.
I have seen cell phone lots at airports – you know, the places you can go and wait for arriving passengers. They call you when they head down to baggage and you return to the terminal to pick them up. It’s a great idea, but nothing like providing places for travelers to catch up on their work at some scenic overlook.
I also want to stress that it just wasn’t one sign that we saw. They were placed periodically along the road in upstate New York as we headed to Vermont. And sure enough, those roadside text stops had a number of cars parked there – safely handling their business.
So why do so many people text and drive – or hold their phones up to their ear when so many states now deem that unlawful? We are supposed to be heading toward a handsfree technology when we are in our cars. If our phones don’t connect to the car sound system, we are to leave them alone until we reach our destination. However, we are all in a hurry. We want the instant gratification of getting an answer to a questions – or we are curious about who is contacting us. Is it urgent? Will I miss out on something if I don’t take this call – or answer this text?
It’s too bad that many of us don’t consider it as urgent when God is involved. Rather that drop everything and make time for the Creator of the Universe, we tend to wait until we are done with the “important” stuff before we really make time for our communication with the Father.
That’s the reverse of the way it should work. And when we do contact the Father, we want an immediate answer. But, just as the billboards in upstate New York state, “It can Wait.” You see, we are not the ones in control. It’s important for us to be patient – whether it is holding off on that text until it is safe – or waiting on God to answer us until He is ready.
Our verse for tonight comes from the Psalms. Frankly, it is a short verse but one that reminds us that we are not in control of time. In Psalm 27:14 , we are told, “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”
God isn’t so quick to always answer us. Many times, He waits for us until He has our undivided attention to reveal the answers to our requests. And that quiet time can even be in the middle of the night – in my life, that seems like one of the times that God likes to tap me on the shoulder and get my attention during what were called in the old days “the watches of the night.”
So whether it is to hear from God, or to get to that next text that we are dying to read, the message tonight is that “It can wait…” We need to slow down and realize that we don’t have to live in an instant gratification world.
My encouragement tonight is that God really does want us to slow down and live life – to smell the roses and pay attention to the things that God wants from us. My prayer is that we will all take more time to just “wait.” God will answer us when He is ready. And maybe the next time we are at one of those text stops, we will even take a few minutes to pray. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…