Driving Home

I am an impatient driver.

I confess to it.

Yes, I know it is wrong to think evil of others on the road. Yes, it is wrong to get upset with someone not travelling the maximum legal speed as they slow me down. Yes, it is wrong to feel upset over things occur contrary to my expectations on the road.

But I do these things. Not that I'm happy about it. It is a weakness of mine. It's time I get into praying about it, and working on it more than just thinking about it.

Often, I would have the reason for this impatience in my mind: "I just want to get home."

From a beloved location in the Blue Mountains I visit often, it takes me fifty minutes to arrive home.

Well, one time late at night, I decided to drive 10 km/hr faster than I normally drive (I am so evil - don't do it. Speed cameras only take photos of 10 km/hr above the speed limit).

As I drove, I did some math in my head... average speed on the way home is... 75km/hr?
The time it takes is 50 minutes,
so the new time is the new average speed times the old time it takes to get home, divided by the old average speed.

50 min x 75 (km/hr) / 85 (km/hr) = 44 minutes.

It would shave off approximately 6 minutes by driving 10 km/hr faster than usual.

Now, driving 10 km/hr faster makes a big difference in many ways. Firstly, I can feel the pressure of cameras and police cars that could catch me. I also feel guilt for not following the law.

But, in the long run, for all of that trouble, I shave off approximately 6 minutes. 6 minutes? Is that worth it? Unless I really did need those 6 minutes for something, then I could take the chance.

I'm better off travelling the normal speed, and avoiding any feelings of guilt and worries of getting caught.

On another night driving home, I pondered about the parallels between driving home and making it to our Heavenly Home.

Lehi taught,

"And because of the intercession for all, all men come unto God; wherefore, they stand in the presence of him, to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him" (2 Nephi 2:10).

Intercession means to intercede, or to be involved in a way that alters consequences and/or events. Christ interceded for us, so that we completely avoid death and complete separation from God, among other things.

So, we all "come unto God... to be judged."

Did you read that? All of us will meet with God again, regardless of how bad we've been or who we are. We are all His children, equally. we are all of equal worth to Him.

Now, one way I calm myself down while driving home is by saying "Aaron, you will make it home when you will make it home." That usually works.

But on this other night as I pondered about the parallels between driving home and making it to our Heavenly Home, I thought, "I don't need to get Home quickly, I just need to work on becoming a good driver."

Brad Wilcox says it this way: "Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly" (His Grace is Sufficient, BYU Speech).

In the same speech, he also says, "We are not earning heaven. We are learning heaven."

If I keep speeding, the day may come when I arrive home, and find fines in the mail that become a reason for my grave disappointmenet and high level of being upset.

Worse than that, if I don't work on the most important things in this life - my relationship with God, and my Christlike character (relationship with myself and others), then I will arrive at the presence of God unprepared. I will have the eternal fine of being uncomfortable in the presence of God, and won't want to live there.

Heaven won't be heaven if I haven't learned to become Heavenly in the chances I have been given on earth.

Fortunately, there is a way, no matter how hard it may seem. and God doesn't care about how good we are - He cares that we are genuinely trying, and trusting in Him, relying on His Atonement.

May we be safe drivers to our earthly homes, and our Heavenly Homes.