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Scripture
You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth? It certainly isn’t God, for he is the one who called you to freedom. For you have been called to live in freedom my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to sere one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:7, 8; 12-14

Observation
There is one place left in the United States where a driver can open the throttle and see what an engine can do. Along the arrow straight patches of Interstates 10 and 20 in West Texas the speed limit signs read “Speed Limit 80.” A friend of mine from traffic jammed Hawaii enjoyed that stretch of highway a little too much on one trip. Not only did he get a ticket but for the next few hundred miles the cop followed right behind him measuring his speed. That slowed his race.

We’ve all had the experience of zipping along a country highway only to be have the waiting tractor on the side road just ahead pull out in front of us. It can be a long, slow crawl choking on Alfalfa riding behind them.

Paul described someone in a great hurry, making exceptional time, who was cut off and slowed down. The churches in Galatia were trailblazers until visitors came from headquarters in Jerusalem. They brought with them lists of dos and don’ts that slowed down the journey. The simple believers were admonished that it was not enough to follow Christ, they must also follow Moses. The tractor of legalism just created a traffic jam. Instead of following the simple commands of Jesus and his delightful pleasure in us, the people fearfully searched the law books for rules they had missed and must apply.

They were called to freedom. Freedom of course does not mean that they could do whatever they wanted. Lawlessness is as much slavery as is legalism. Freedom means just following one person who takes burdens away and does not add more to the load. Freedom is running with just Jesus. The road is open, there are no speed limits, there is no traffic, simply the call to follow in his steps.

Application
If we have lost our freedom to run after Christ we need to examine who cut in on our race. Often times it comes from people who want us to live up to their expectations. I’ve followed such tractors. Some are dour rain clouds with rules and regulations. Still others are filled with suspicions and want us to prove ourselves. There are sprinters who want us to be clones of their style and so slow us down. There are a few, very few, who deep down don’t want us to make it and ride their brakes to hold us back.

Who is the blame for this slowdown in our lives? Is it those who are blocking traffic? No, it is we who follow them. We follow these people because somehow they offer something that we want. We don’t see it that way. We think it is their fault, when in fact it is our own. Maybe they offer a weird kind of acceptance, approval or acclaim. Our race is slowed because we stopped running our race when we began running theirs. The race begins when follow no one other than Jesus. Most don’t run this race because the road is lonely. It is easier to be rewarded by human voices than to wait for God’s. His voice is heard at the end of the race with the words “Well done!” Until then there is an empty road made just for us.

Prayer
Father, I can see today things I haven’t seen before. There are people getting in the way of my following you. None of them know it. They are just running their race, but I’m copying theirs. The issue is not with them but with me. I’ve been happy to trade in their approval for yours. That’s not right. So here I am to start again. I want to follow you only. Amen.