Time With Tandy

Inspirational author and speaker

Time With Tandy

Inspirational author and speaker

Tag: safety

  • How to Use Rumble Strips

    inspiration, Jesus, Holy Spirit, conscienceMy husband and I were driving and the warmth of the sun shining through the windows soon lulled me to sleep. As we travelled down a rural road Brian purposely drove across the rumble strips to see if the noise and vibration would wake me.

    Rumble strips are grooves or rows of indents in the pavement designed to alert distracted or drowsy drivers that they are leaving their lane.
    There are center-line rumble strips which are used on undivided highways to reduce cross-over incidents that could result in head-on collisions. Another type are shoulder rumble strips which are used to reduce run-off-road collisions. On a long stretch of rural highway I have also encountered rumble strips across the traffic lane to alert me to the fact an intersection is coming up.

    Brian and I talked about how useful rumble strips would be as we travel the road of life. Wouldn’t it be nice to have something to alert us when we are straying of-course? How about a warning for when we are approaching a potentially dangerous situation? I could use something that tells me when to be alert and proceed with caution.

    Actually, I have all of this and more. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would be with me to teach me all things. When I feel my conscience warning me about something, I know that this is the Holy Spirit working to keep me from harm.

    But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. (John 14:26 NIV)

    Be alert. Be firm in the Christian faith. Be courageous and strong. (1 Corinthians 16:13 GWT)

  • Snowsqualls

    Storms, Jesus, safety, reliance
    image from globalnews.ca
    I had heard of squalls before but generally thought of them as sudden winds coming up on the water. They were something boaters had to be wary of.
    Our weather report called for a snowsquall. Since this was something I was unfamiliar with, I decided to do a little research.

    According to Wikipedia, “A snowsquall is a sudden moderately heavy snow fall with blowing snow and strong gusty surface winds. It is often referred to as a whiteout and is similar to a blizzard but is localized in time in space and snow accumulations may or may not be significant.”

    Essentially, what this told me is that we will be hit with sudden winds and blowing snow producing conditions that make it difficult, if not impossible to see what’s in front of us. As if that wasn’t bad enough, we have no idea if it will leave significant accumulations to clean up after.

    When I examine this, I can see parallels to my life. There have been times I’ve had the emotional equivalent of a snowsquall. Suddenly I’ve been hit with unexpected gusts that make it difficult to focus on taking the next step forward. I have no idea what the fallout may be. Will I have a huge mess to clean up or will the storm temporarily throw me off-balance but leave me unscathed?

    I have learned that the way I handle these squalls has a direct result in how well I come through them. Left to my own devices, I tend to panic. It’s easy to get turned around, confused and end up creating bigger fallout for myself.

    When I walk with Jesus, the results are much different. He doesn’t keep me from the storms. Some of them are necessary for my personal growth. By calling out to him, I know that he will calm me and guide me safely through. I will come out not only intact but stronger due to what I’ve gone through. I don’t need to see the outcome, just Jesus by my side to have the reassurance that everything will be alright,

    “Your strength will come by settling down in complete dependence on me – the very thing you’ve been unwilling to do.” Isaiah 30:15B The Message

  • Speed Bumps

    God, inspirationSpeed bumps are necessary to ensure traffic safety. Going over the bump causes me to slow down my vehicle. I am used to speed bumps that are fairly low and just a minor inconvenience. Years ago, when my sister-in-law was still a teenager, she told me that she could drive over them fast enough that she didn’t feel the bumps!

    In some areas the speed bumps are not only high, but also wide. These definitely impact my speed as I need to slow to a crawl to get over them. The nice thing is that there are signs alerting us as we approach them. That way we can prepare and not be caught off guard.

    I look at the warning signs and wonder what it would be like to have a sign warning me when I am coming up to a speed bump in my life. Some of the speed bumps I’ve encountered have been just minor irritations, hardly slowing me down. Others are the large, bone jarring kind that causes me to almost stop in my tracks. They may even seem too large to get past. If I had the warning sign in life, I may do more than slow down. Not wanting the uncomfortable interruption on my otherwise smooth path, I may turn around instead of moving forward. If I know what the future holds, there is no need for faith and trust in the Lord. I don’t need to second guess myself, I only need to trust that the Lord is guiding me and he knows what is best.

    But I trust in you, Lord; I say, “You are my God.” Psalm 31:14 NIV