“Yeah,” I said after he told me why he pulled me over. “I wasn’t paying attention to my speed until I saw you.” He laughed and said, “That’s usually how it happens.” The extremely kind officer let me off with a warning, and I still made it to work on time.

While waiting for him to run my information, I couldn’t help but laugh to myself. I have heard a lot of messages lately about respecting authority and what that scripture means and what it does not mean. The most recent sermon was from Chuck Swindoll’s Insight for Living ministry program which aired on BBN Radio the day before.

Romans 13:1-5 (New Living Translation)

Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. 2 So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. 3 For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. 4 The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. 5 So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

To briefly sum up Dr. Swindoll’s message, the time to go against authority is when they go against our Christian morals and ethics. I.E., laws of the road = good. Laws of Nazi Germany = bad.

In this instance, this police officer rightfully deserved my complete respect. I could have gotten upset, complaining to myself and others that this cop was out to get me, small town cop with nothing better to do. After all, it’ s not like I was going that fast or being reckless.

But the truth is, the law states that the speed limit in this area is 20 miles per hour. Several signs along this stretch of road warn me. I drove 10 miles over the posted speed limit. I broke the law. Plain and simple.

And as the officer explained, the posted speed is important because this particular stretch of road has a lot of pedestrian traffic – runners, walkers, people pushing strollers, kids on bicycles. And one thing he did not need to tell me is that this area was probably a lot quieter and safer before the I-35 construction which rerouted a lot of motorists – including me.

But reasons for the speed limit is irrelevant. The relevance here is that I did, indeed, break the law. I can blame no one but myself that I got caught. It is no one’s fault except my own.

As I sat there waiting for the officer tell me my fate, I replayed Swindoll’s message and meaning beyond this simple traffic violation. I contemplated the current state of my country and the world. I thought about decisions being made that go completely against my moral and ethical standards, things I feel completely helpless to do anything about.

I prayed about it just a few hours before being pulled over by this traffic cop. Unsure what little-ole-me could do, I heard God tell me, “Pray.” It felt like such a little thing, but it’s all I know to do right now, and it’s all he is asking me to do right now.

I do believe in the power of prayer, so I prayed.

Still, thinking about my heroes, I could not help but wonder if I will have the courage to do more should the time ever come.

Contrary to popular belief, Jon Bon Jovi is not one of my life-heroes. I LOVE the man and the music. He has been an inspiration to me since I was ten years old, but he is not one I would consider my life heroes.

The people I admire most are:

Chuck Yeager – United States Air Force test pilot who became the first man to break the speed of sound.

Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier with broken ribs. He fell off a horse and kept his injuries a secret, afraid of being grounded.

He is my hero because of his nothing-gets-in-his-way determination. After reading his autobiography, part of me wondered if he may have been a bit manic. Regardless, I wish I were as passionate and driven about anything the way he was about flying.

John McCain – Politician and Naval officer who was shot down over North Vietnam, becoming a prisoner of war for five years.

Before he ran for president, I read John McCain’s autobiography. He spent five years in a prisoner of war camp during Vietnam. What makes his story even more phenomenal is that, because of his family connections, he could have been released. Instead, he deliberately chose to remain a prisoner with his comrades in a brave act of devotion to his country and fellow prisoners.

John McCain is my hero because of his devoted sense of loyalty. He demonstrated in the most extreme way what it means to lay down one’s life (comfort) for his friends. That is a biblical example of love. (John 15:13).

After reading his autobiography, I thought that he deserved to be president. When he ran, I knew that if I did not do something, the general public would only see an old man who could barely lift his arms above his shoulders. They would never know why. He had no chance against a good looking, well-spoken man like Barrack Obama.

McCain’s run for president marked the only time I have ever gotten involved in politics. Unfortunately, the one man who loved this country more than any other man or woman alive at the time, lost, but at least I got to shake his hand.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer – Lutheran German pastor who became a vocal opponent of the complacent church and a key figure in the anti-Nazi resistance, dying in captivity just two weeks shy of liberation.

After reading The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer began my love affair with history, specifically the human spirit in the midst of human suffering. I began a quest to understand biblical history and to take seriously Christian ethics.

Deitrich Bonhoeffer is my hero because of the integrity and courage he showed in the face of political and religious opposition.

The majority of churches in his day buried their heads in the sand, electing to turn a blind eye to the atrocities of Hitler’s regime as long as that same regime left them alone. Bonhoeffer boldly spoke out against this “cheap grace,” arguing that true Christianity requires a costly, disciplined discipleship.

His stance, voice, and actions led to his arrest and death. Like McCain, Bonhoeffer could have left the confines of prison. Instead, he elected to stay as a matter of faith and principle, knowing that his choice would lead to his death.

Determination – loyalty – integrity – courage – these are the qualities I most admire in my heroes, the qualities I long for myself.

I recently heard about new embryo screening technology. The segment reminded me of the book, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The citizens of this world are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hierarchy. What seemed so outlandish when I first read it is looking more and more like a near-future reality.

Maybe Jesus really is coming back soon. I mean, stories like this remind me of the biblical stories of the tower of Babel and Noah’s flood. Does anyone remember what happened to those people who forget God – or who tried to be God? The people were scattered after the Babel incident. Everyone except Noah’s family died in the flood.

As the George Santayana quote reminds us, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” It seems to me that we are, once again, repeating the worst of human history. Will this be the time God decides enough is enough? Or will he let us play this out and meet us in the dust heap of our own making to help us rebuild yet again?

Several national and international issues bother me, but I will admit that I am not educated enough to do much about them – and I certainly do not trust the media to give me all the actual FACTS. News is less fact and more commentary, slanting one way or another. I trust neither side to tell me the truth.

So, although what I hear bothers my conscience, it does not move me enough to boldly stand up or speak out – yet.

If the time comes when I have no doubt that what is happening is wrong – in whatever capacity – in whatever part of the world, will I be passionate enough to push ahead like Yeager? Loyal enough like McCain? Honest and courageous enough like Boenhoffer?

I hope so, but only time will tell, and honestly, I pray fervently that the time will never come for me to have to test it. But I worry that if not my generation, the next generation will absolutely be challenged to either step up or step aside.

So, how do I – how do we – prepare for a day in which we may be called to stand up against the powers that be and protect our Christian morals and ethics?

The first step is to know what it is we believe and why.

If we are Christian, we better make sure we dust off our Bibles and make sure we know what scripture says and what it asks of us.

Just as importantly, we need to build our relationship with the Jesus of scripture.

And – “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

Because “where two or three gather together as [God’s] followers, [He is] there among them.” (Matthew 18:20).

In other words, being part of a faith community matters.