Speed Bumps

I hate speed bumps.

On a list of 10... okay, maybe 50... things I hate most, speed bumps are certainly on that list. I just want to get where I'm going without some dumb security mechanism ensuring that I either slow down dramatically (only to speed right back up again and waste gas in my small 4-cylinder truck) or break my suspension and risk hitting my head on the roof. I don't know about you, but I feel perfectly safe and able to drive with caution when people are around. The fact that some people years ago decided to control how I drive really just gets on my nerves. Well... got on my nerves. My perspective on speed bumps is a little different than it used to be.

In retrospect, I realize how impatient and insensitive I've been to speed bumps. Those poor guys serve one job: to get run over day after day only to ensure our safety. Speed bumps have been given a bad name, and unjustly so. I blame my American mindset of impatience and urgency.

From Harding's campus to Namwianga's main road, they are everywhere. I thought American speed bumps were bad until I got to Zambia. We actually saw the making of a certain speed bump from start to finish. It consisted of telephone poles and various junk lined up across the road and covered by dirt. It became packed down as vehicles drove across it. Not sure if that's how all of them are made, but that's how they made the one we saw. The 7k road probably had 8-10 speed bumps strategically placed throughout. Flying over those speed bumps in the back seat of a 30-person coaster bus can get you more air than a great white on shark week. Like seriously... watch your head! My first several weeks in Zambia were full of moans and groans caused by speed bumps.

As frustrating as speed bumps can be, I believe there is a beautiful lesson to be learned from them.

Most obviously, speed bumps teach you to slooow dooown. Often (especially as Americans) we are in such a rush to finish one thing and move on to the next... to get somewhere quickly just so we can leave quickly... to beat the clock just so we can take on more obligations that increase our stress and "need" for more time. I am ever-so guilty of this in the past few years.

On a deeper level, I have experienced numerous social and spiritual speed bumps in Zambia and since coming back to the States. Adjusting to a new culture was very difficult, and at times, I felt as though I knew nothing and was starting from the very bottom. When the whole dynamics of everyday living changed, my speed was constantly being checked by new struggles. Suddenly I began to question even the most basic mannerisms and behaviors that have always been the norm. Spiritually, new questions came up that I had never even considered. My comfy, padded, bubble-wrapped faith was bombarded by questions of Gospel vs. Culture and what Christianity means on a global level. Coming back, I have noticed faults in American ways of life like never before. My formerly ethnocentric worldview prevented me from seeing faults in my own culture when I should have realized that every society has its fair share of strengths and weaknesses. Things that used to never bother me have caused me to back up and re-evaluate my own values, beliefs, and behaviors. We all have our own spiritual speed bumps- whether they be questions of faith, struggles with living missionally, slip-ups into old habits, unanswered prayers, or anything else, really.

How do we deal with these speed bumps? Do we get frustrated and slam on the gas pedal even harder? Do we get mad and blame God for messing things up when we were cruising right along? Do we shut down and refuse to realize that one closed door is not the end of the hallway? It is so important to realize that oftentimes speed bumps are placed in our lives by God Himself- or at least allowed by Him. This is not to say that God causes evil or disaster in our lives- that stuff's not His fault. But some of the greatest speed bumps we'll ever experience were put there for a reason.

At one point on the Namwianga road, there is a narrow bridge with barely enough room for one vehicle to cross. Years ago, a truck full of people went speeding down the hill, turned the corner, and lost control on the bridge. The accident ended disastrously. Shortly following that accident, speed bumps were placed about 50 yards on either side of the bridge and spaced throughout the rest of the road. Though these speed bumps may seem annoying, they could be the very things saving people's lives.

I have no doubt that God places spiritual speed bumps in the lives of His children for their own good. Some road planners out there have placed literal speed bumps for the safety and well-being of the people. Similarly, God allows diversity in our lives to shape us into better followers of Christ and servants of Him. When He answers "No" to a yearning prayer... when He allows a relationship to end... when doubts and questions come up in your faith... It's all for a reason. Maybe, just maybe, that speed bump is saving our lives or creating new opportunities we never knew existed. I sure believe they are.

I've grown in areas I never knew needed growth since my study abroad trip in Zambia. I like to believe that my patience, tolerance, and contextual understanding have increased. I hope that the stretches, struggles, and strivings I've experienced will be the very things that drive me to be a better Christian in the future.

But enough about me.

I challenge you to identify speed bumps in your life- whether past or present. When are times that you've been challenged or had to slow down when you didn't want to? Can you look back on any of those experiences and see how God has worked them out for good? If not yet, you probably will someday. And even if you don't see the difference, others will. In the future, may we strive to view speed bumps as blessings rather than curses. This doesn't make them less frustrating; it still stinks to have to slow down and be bumped around when everything was going fine. But it helps me, and hopefully helps you, to be more appreciative of the challenges placed in our lives. Some of the greatest blessings you'll ever experience will come from spiritual speed bumps. 

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28.

Love God. You are called according to His purpose. Make all your decisions with godly wisdom, and embrace every opportunity you're afforded. Every time you go over a speed bump in a parking lot or even on Harding's campus, I hope you look up and smile, thinking of the ways God works out spiritual speed bumps for good to those who love Him.

Bless & be blessed,

Drew