Haste

Somewhere between the hustle culture sermons about “grinding for the Kingdom” and your boss passive-aggressively emailing you at 10 p.m. with a “quick question,” the idea of actual, soul-filling rest has been lost.

Rest isn’t just a luxury—it’s a necessity. A spiritual, emotional, and even physical game-changer that modern life is actively working against. We treat it like a reward for productivity, something we “earn” by checking enough boxes. But that’s not how it works. If you only allow yourself to rest when you’ve run out of energy, you’re not actually resting. You’re recovering from burnout.

For a generation that’s really into “self-care,” we sure are bad at resting. We schedule vacations that are more exhausting than our regular lives and take “Sabbath” as an excuse to binge entire seasons of prestige TV in one sitting.

The Bible starts with God creating the world in six days and resting on the seventh—not because he was tired but because he was setting the rhythm. Rest wasn’t an afterthought. It was built into creation itself.

Jesus followed that rhythm too. He regularly stepped away from crowds, left people hanging (yes, really) and took time alone to pray. If the literal Savior of the world wasn’t available 24/7, why do we think we need to be?

Here’s the thing: rest isn’t just good for your soul. It’s good for your brain. Studies show that chronic stress literally rewires your brain, making it harder to focus, regulate emotions, and be productive in the long run.

The world thrives on keeping you busy. Consumerism, capitalism, and even some versions of church culture—there’s always something else to achieve. But choosing rest? That’s countercultural.

So, take a real Sabbath. Put your phone in another room. Go outside. Breathe. Let yourself rest. Because you don’t need to “earn” it. In fact, you were created for it.

Clinical psychologist Jenny Taitz writes, “I see so many clients who don’t have the ability to wait, and it is no wonder. In a world where it is possible to get the answer to any question instantly with Google and to order coffee for immediate pickup on an app, why should any of us have to deal with delays and unknowns?”

Unfortunately, for many of us, the challenge is that being patient now feels harder than ever before. A 2023 study involving more than 28,000 adults and adolescents found that the average person’s mood got steadily worse every minute they sat doing nothing. Waiting patiently is so difficult that we often react by doing things that actually make us more impatient, like constantly checking our phones for updates or seeking reassurance from everyone we know.

Michael Dugas, another psychologist in the same article notes, “Technology creates the illusion that certainty is possible, which leads to trying to attain certainty in all situations, contributing to worry and anxiety.” When a loved one doesn’t pick up the phone, we track their location instead of waiting for them to call back. When an email doesn’t get a prompt response, we can find out precisely when it was opened. Such behavior only adds to our worry and anxiety.

A recent study by The Washington Post has revealed a startling number of cases where innocent people have been accused or arrested for crimes because they were identified through a faulty deployment of AI-driven facial recognition software.

Katie Kinsey is chief of staff for the Policing Project at the NYU School of Law. According to Kinsey, such software is often used to analyze low-quality, grainy surveillance photos or images, and as a result perform demonstrably worse in real-world situations compared to laboratory tests involving crystal-clear, high-resolution images.

Additionally, police often succumb to a phenomenon known as “automation bias,” where people tend to believe that machines or computers are less biased and more trustworthy. This phenomenon, combined with other identification techniques with limited efficacy like witness testimony, often create scenarios where officers hastily jump to conclusions without doing their due diligence. Sometimes officers fail to account for the possibility that innocent citizens might bear physical similarities to criminal suspects. Other times, they rely on the facial recognition hit without using other forensic evidence for confirmation.

For example, a medical entrepreneur named Jason Vernau spent three days behind bars after being arrested for check fraud after police used facial recognition to ID him as a bank customer. In this case, the software was correct; Vernau had been in the Miami bank where the fraudulent check was deposited, but he was there to deposit a legitimate check. Had officers done even a cursory examination of his financial documents, or the time stamps in the security footage, they would’ve ruled him out as a suspect.

“This is your investigative work?” That’s what Vernau asked the detectives who questioned him. “You have a picture of me at a bank and that’s your proof? I said, ‘where’s my fingerprints on the check? Where’s my signature?’”

After Vernau was released, prosecutors later dropped the case, but Vernau said he is still working to get the charges removed from his record.

Possible Preaching Angles:

This story highlights several themes that resonate with biblical narratives, particularly concerning justice, false accusations, and the dangers of relying on flawed systems or human biases.

It took Noah Lyles 9.79 seconds to run 100 meters on August 4, 2024. It took 29.47 seconds for him to find out that he actually won. Once the closest, tensest men’s 100-meter final in modern Olympic history was over, the real drama was only beginning.

The race was so tight that the man who crossed the line first suspected that he’d finished second. Lyles put a hand on the shoulder of Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson to congratulate him. Thompson stared at the Stade de France scoreboard, willing the photo finish to go his way. “Come on, man!” he shouted.

Some 70,000 spectators held their breath. In the time it took to crown the winner, Lyles and Thompson could have run 100 meters three more times. That was when one of the most advanced scoring systems in any sport on the planet got to work.

To determine that Lyles had won by a margin of five thousandths of a second, it took three judges, three high-speed cameras—and a willingness to make the fastest men alive stand around and wait.

During those agonizing moments, the runners’ fates were in the hands of a team from Omega Timing, which has been responsible for tracking every fraction of a second at the Olympics for nearly a century.

Possible Preaching Angles:

1) Rapture; Second Coming of Christ – This incredibly small amount of time illustrates that important events can happen very quickly, such as: “a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor. 15:52); 2) Perseverance - Lyles' journey to Olympic gold demonstrates the importance of perseverance in the face of challenges. This reflects the biblical teaching to "run with perseverance the race marked out for us" (Heb. 12:1); 3) Humility - Lyles initially thought he had lost and congratulated Thompson, showing humility in what he believed was defeat (Phil. 2:3-5); 4) Patience - The 29.47-second wait for the results exemplifies the need for patience, echoing the biblical wisdom that "patience is better than pride" (Eccl. 7:8, Jam. 5:7-11); 5) Unity - The camaraderie between Lyles and Thompson, even in the midst of intense competition, reflects the biblical principle of loving one's neighbor (Mark 12:31).

Religious and non-religious people alike think that many people are living shallow and superficial lives. They have noticed that many are rushing through life at break-neck speeds, with little regard or thought to what they are doing. Author Pete Davis explores this issue by going back to 1986 and the improbable opening of a McDonald's restaurant in Italy:

When the burger chain opened in the Piazza di Spagna, one of the most famous squares in Rome, an outcry erupted across Italy. Thousands rallied to protest what Italians saw as the desecration of a historic center by a symbol of shallow consumerism. One of the chain's opponents, Italian journalist Carlo Petrini, thought sign and angry chants were not enough to convey the depth of the protest's message. So, he went to the square and handed out bowls of pasta, a symbol of Italy's deep culinary tradition. Petrini and his compatriots shouted: “We don't want fast food. We want slow food.”

Thus, the International Slow Food movement was born, advocating not just for local cuisines but "slow and prolonged enjoyment.” The Slow Food movement spread around the world. It was perfectly timed for an era when people were beginning to notice the downsides of the global forces that had been prioritizing quantity over quality, spectacle over depth, and the fast over the slow. It felt bigger than food. It was a whole different mindset than that being served up by the global corporations of the day.

Davis ends the segment by quoting Ralph Waldo Emerson and elaborates:

“In skating over thin ice, our safety is in our speed.” When there's not much underneath the surface of our superficial routines, best to move fast to distract ourselves from our shallowness. When we force ourselves to move slow again, as the Slow movement calls us to do, we confront it. The confrontation can be terrifying. But as we move through it, we can begin to rediscover depth.

Polish golfer Adrian Meronk stood over his second shot on the 18th hole of a pro tournament on March 3rd, 2024 and saw another opportunity to climb up the leaderboard. A late birdie in the final round would see him take home an even richer payday from the lucrative event.

But the time Meronk spent mulling that shot turned out to be extraordinarily costly.

Meronk’s birdie was changed to a par after he was assessed a one-stroke penalty for violating the pace of play policy. LIV Golf said that Meronk’s group, which included Masters champion Jon Rahm, had already been warned by a rules official for lagging behind. Then, on that shot on the 18th hole, Meronk was timed at over two minutes, exceeding the time allowed.

That proved to be hugely consequential. Had his original score stood, Meronk would have tied for fifth place with Rahm at 11-under and won $750,000 in prize money at LIV’s tournament in Saudi Arabia. Instead, Meronk ended up in a six-way tie for sixth and won $508,750—a loss of $241,250.

Possible Preaching Angle:

In a similar way, the pace of life these days is so fast and furious that it feels like we’re not keeping up, going faster and faster, will have dire consequences on our lives.

Conventional wisdom says that good things come to those who wait. That axiom rarely applies, however, to the drudgery of domestic air travel as most people go through the modern air travel system. Phil Stringer, however, is not most people.

Stringer travels for work quite often. So, when his early morning flight from Oklahoma City to his hometown of Charlotte experienced a maintenance-related flight delay, he took it in stride, relocating from the gate to a nearby Starbucks.

But then the delays continued, dragging on throughout the day. Eventually he outlasted the staff at the airport Starbucks, who had to kick him out so they could close. When he finally heard the boarding call, however, he was confused.

Stringer said in an interview, "I had thought that everyone had boarded and I was late, because no one was there But [the gate agent] was like, 'No, honey, you're the only one left.'" Everyone else, fed up with the lengthy delays, had sought other options.

The airline, however, could not simply cancel the flight, because the plane and its cargo were needed in Charlotte. So, after being unceremoniously summoned from their nearby hotel, the crew of four flight attendants went through their normal routine, despite having only one passenger. Stringer spent the two-and-a-half-hour flight laughing and joking with them, quite bemused by the novelty of the situation.

He captured his unique scenario with a video and uploaded it to TikTok, where it went viral with over eleven million likes. Stringer said, "We were like, look, we can either be negative about the situation and make a bad situation worse by our attitude. Or we can be positive, lighthearted, and try and make something of this and at least just have fun."

Stringer made some good friends that day, and made plans to see the group of attendants in their home base of Dallas the next time he comes through. He also heard from many people on social media who were encouraged to keep a positive attitude when their plans go awry.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Patience is a virtue precisely because part of the Christian life is waiting patiently on God for outcomes that only God can accomplish or control. When we exhibit patience, we are continually putting trust in God to accomplish the things God has promised.

Eleven-year-old Aderrien Murry once held aspirations of becoming a police officer, but that changed after a recent encounter with law enforcement. Murry was with his mother Nakala late one night when a domestic disturbance broke out between her and the father of one of his siblings. Nakala asked him to call 911, and he did, asking for assistance from local police.

According to attorney Carlos Moore, representing the Murry family, the first officer on the scene was Greg Capers, who arrived with his firearm drawn. Even after Nakala told Capers that no one in the apartment was armed, she says Capers yelled out a command for anyone in the apartment to come out with their hands up. And while Aderrian was complying with the officer’s command and had his hands up, the officer shot him anyway. At a news conference, she remembered the boy’s immediate response: “Why did he shoot me? What did I do?”

A representative from the Indianola Police Department eventually confirmed Capers’ identity as the shooter, and referred to the incident as “extremely tragic on both sides.” Officials have since launched a probe into the shooting, although it’s not clear whether racial animus played a role in the shooting, since Capers, Nakala, and Aderrien Murry are all African American.

Still, the family and many members of the local community are shaken, despite the fact that Aderrien is expected to make a full recovery. Attorney Moore said, “There’s no justification for what this officer did. Aderrien came within an inch of losing his life over the officer’s reckless actions.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

In a climate of hopelessness and violence, even children can become targeted by careless officials. The way of Jesus is marked by making peace, taking care, and creating safety for everyone in the community, not just the rich or powerful.

Cybersecurity services provider Kaspersky has released a report on risks associated with cryptocurrency use. The report titled “Crypto Threats 2023” focused on the United States and uncovered some surprisingly poor user security habits.

Kaspersky surveyed 2,000 American adults and found that 24% of respondents overall owned cryptocurrency or digital assets. Ownership ranged from 36% in the 25–44 age category to 10% among those aged 55 or older.

A third of the crypto owners surveyed reported having crypto stolen, and an equal portion reported being victims of scams. Identity theft, theft of payment details, and loss of account access led the list of scam consequences. The average value of assets stolen was $97,583. Here, too, there was a sharp differentiation by age, with 47% of those ages 18–24 reporting thefts of (larger amounts of) crypto, compared to 8% of those over 55 (who reported smaller amounts of loss).

Lax security might account for many of the losses experienced by respondents. The survey found that crypto owners last checked on their crypto six weeks ago, and their accounts have minimal protection: “27% of users keep their crypto stored in an exchange account with no added protection, while only 34% use multi-factor authentication to protect their account.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

This report is another excellent reminder to focus on the security of our treasure in heaven and not to trust uncertain wealth on earth “… a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys” (Matt. 6:19-20; Luke 12:33).

In May, 1853, Phoebe and her husband Holden Judson joined a covered wagon train near Kansas City hoping to reach Washington Territory by mid-October. This was a distance of more than 2,000 miles over the rough Oregon Trail. Like all wagon trains, they elected a captain. His word was the law. Well, they chose Rev. Gustavus Hines, only to be surprised one Saturday night when he announced the train would never travel on Sundays.

Phoebe was shocked. They had half a continent to cross, at oxen pace (15-20 miles per day on a good trail), with mountain passes and innumerable river crossings ahead of them. She sat in her wagon and just fumed. One family deserted the train and joined another.

On their first Sunday, while they stood still, one train after another passed them by. They started out again on Monday, only to reach their first river cross on Tuesday evening. A long line of wagons stretched out ahead of them, waiting for the single ferry to carry them across. They waited three days. On Saturday they resumed the journey, only to be told they would still rest the whole next day. Phoebe was livid. This made absolutely no sense to her.

Then, a few weeks later she began to see scores of dead oxen, mules, and horses along the trail. They had been driven so relentlessly, they had collapsed and died. She grudgingly admitted that perhaps the animals needed a day of rest.

A few weeks later, she ruefully admitted that maybe the men needed it too, since they walked most of the time. Then she slowly began to notice that as they worshipped, ate, rested, and even played together on Sundays, it had a remarkably beneficial effect upon people’s spirits. There was less grumbling, more cooperation. She even noticed that they seemed to make better time the other six days.

Finally, what totally sold her on the value of the Sabbath happened one Sunday evening. The family that had deserted them came limping into their campsite, humbly asking to rejoin them. She had assumed they were at least a week ahead; in fact, they had fallen behind. Their own wagon train had broken down! Of course, they welcomed them back. And so it happened that they reached their destination in plenty of time, as friends, and out of the 50 head of cattle with which they began, only two were lost.

A 71-year-old Swedish man was in his driveway shoveling snow in the Swedish city of Trollhättan, when he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. Normally, you have about ten minutes to get help in such a situation and ambulance response times are often too long to save the life of the patient. Typically, only ten percent of people survive sudden cardiac arrest.

Luckily, a telephone call was immediately placed requesting emergency services and the man lived in a region that had partnered with Everdrone’s innovative life-saving program. Everdrones deliver an automated external defibrillator (AED) to the scene. The amount of time from the alarm until the AED was safely delivered at the doorstep of the incident address was just over three minutes.

Even more fortuitous, a doctor happened to be driving by and stopped to see if he could help. Dr. Mustafa Ali said, “I was on my way to work at the local hospital when I looked out the car window and saw a man collapsed in his driveway and I immediately rushed to help. The man had no pulse, so I started doing CPR while asking another bystander to call the Swedish emergency number. Just minutes later, I saw something flying above my head. It was a drone with a defibrillator!”

After the initial treatment on site, the ambulance arrived, the patient was rushed to the hospital. “This is a truly revolutionary technology that needs to be implemented all over,” said the patient who now has made a full recovery and returned home. “If it wasn’t for the drone I probably wouldn’t be here.”

The company behind the drone pilot project says it’s the first time in medical history that a drone has played a crucial part in saving a life during a cardiac arrest. The drone carries an ultralight defibrillator, which can be used by any bystander.

Possible Preaching Angles:

1) Good Samaritan; Social Action – We should always be ready to speed help to others in time of need; 2) Action; Help from God; Prayer, answered – When God decides to take action, he moves faster than we can imagine, help is immediate (Isa. 65:24).

In a recent issue of CT magazine, Jen Wilkin writes:

When the first ATM was installed in my hometown in the 1980s, it felt like magic: Insert your card, take out cash. Since then, we’ve learned to love not having to wait in just about every area of our lives. Products arrive at our doors within a day. Meals in a matter of minutes. Movies, books, and music appear on our devices instantly.

It’s wonderful. And it’s also worth weighing carefully. Rapid delivery teaches us that waiting is an enemy to be eliminated, standing between us and what we desire. With each quicker, more convenient development, we are attenuating our ability to wait.

But being able to wait is distinctly Christian. In fact, it is a mark of Christian maturity. The Bible speaks of waiting on the Lord, of being steadfast, and of bearing the spiritual fruit of patience. While most of us recognize that instant gratification is the habitat we inhabit, few have assessed how “waitlessness” may be forming us spiritually—specifically, how it may be shaping our approach to the Bible.

Around fourth grade, I was taught the spiritual discipline of spending “time in the Word.” Like many, I was encouraged to have a “quiet time,” 15 or 20 minutes in Scripture, preferably in the morning (because, you know, Jesus rose early in the morning). This practice was supposed to calibrate my day, to fill my spiritual tank for whatever the rest of that day may hold.

When we think of quiet time as transactional, we treat Scripture as a debit account that offers us meaning or feeling on our timetable. Each day we insert our debit cards and withdraw 15 minutes of inspiration. Instead, we should take a savings account perspective, where we make faithful deposits, investing ourselves over days and weeks and years without expecting immediate emotional or intellectual yield.

In nature, red skin signals that a tomato is ripe. But this is not necessarily true of tomatoes that have been forced to turn red. It is entirely possible, and likely, that we are purchasing and consuming unripe fruit. And there would be little way of knowing it until we take the first bite.

To be fair, part of the reason that growers gas tomatoes with ethylene is because this is what the market demands. As consumers, we want to walk into our local grocery store any time of the day, any day of the week, and pick up a red tomato.

In much the same way, we want the certainty of knowing that the answers to life’s questions are always within reach. But humility teaches us to wait for God for answers. Humility teaches us to let knowledge ripen on the vine.

In the hours immediately before his death, Jesus spends time teaching and praying with his disciples, reminding them that they must abide in him in order to bear fruit. He also promises to send the Helper, or the Holy Spirit, to enable them to learn and grow. Jesus promises them, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.”

While Jesus is concerned that his disciples grow in their understanding, he is also comfortable with them not knowing all things—in part because they aren’t ready for more knowledge yet. Jesus is also confident in the Holy Spirit’s ability to take them through the process. But this can only happen as they are connected to him, the Vine.

Proverbs 3 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” In God’s wisdom, the very process of learning binds us to him in a way that simply knowing answers cannot. And so he asks you to trust him. He asks you to humble yourself to wait for him.

A soft-spoken software developer has become one of the leading voices warning the general public about the dangers of cryptocurrency. Molly White grew up like many of her peers--on the internet. In her teenage years she started editing Wikipedia pages about her favorite bands.

But more recently, she’s turned her attention to cryptocurrency, in part because she sees it as a potential threat. Her website covers the litany of scams and scandals related to cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. She started her research by trying to write a Wikipedia article on the term “Web3,” which had been in high circulation on social media by 2021.

I kept seeing the word everywhere, but no one was saying what it meant. Most of my disdain is reserved for the big players who are marketing this to a mainstream audience as though it’s an investment. They often promise it to be a ticket out of a really tough financial spot for people who don’t have many options. It’s very predatory.

She’s known about the technology for a while but it didn’t catch her attention initially because most of the people losing their money were tech-savvy and wealthy. But eventually that changed. White said, “People are putting in money that they can’t afford to lose. They thought this might be their ticket out of poverty or they can finally stop working that minimum-wage job and then all their savings are gone.”

White’s daily posts are so popular, says Wikipedia editor Andrew Lih, because they’re so accessible. “That’s what’s so great about her. She is like, ‘I’m not going to club you over the head with it. Just you read this conveyor belt of ridiculousness and draw your own conclusions.’ And I think that’s been the strength of her blog.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

Christian wisdom often requires trusting God enough to avoid risky get-rich-quick schemes in favor of faithful stewardship, even if such stewardship is not considered trendy or popular.

Mount Walker, about 60 miles northwest of Seattle, is said to have remarkable views. But one woman’s unforgettable experience atop the mountain restricted her field of view considerably. That’s because she fell into a pit toilet trying to rescue her phone.

According to Fire Department Chief Tim Manly, she was using her phone on the pit toilet when it fell inside. She first tried to remove the toilet seat in order to reach in, and then used her dog leash as a makeshift rope to lower herself in. That effort, however, failed--dropping her headfirst into the toilet.

Once reunited with her phone, she tried and failed to climb out. After that didn’t work, she called 911 for help. Once firefighters arrived on the scene, they used a surprisingly low-tech solution: cinder blocks, which she used to stand on. After she was high enough, they were able to attach a harness and lift her out of the toilet.

According to the department’s statement, the woman was uninjured and strongly encouraged to seek medical attention, but she only wanted to leave. Chief Manly said, “I’ve been doing this for 40 years. And that was a first.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

Sometimes when we think we can fix things on our own we end up making things worse. Sometimes God prompts us to take action; other times, to wait until proper help can arrive. Wisdom is in discerning the difference between the two.

I’m in the express-lane at Wal-Mart. I have two items, and I’m in a hurry. That makes no difference in my situation unfortunately. There is a lady in front of me with a cart full of groceries. Why didn’t the checkout lady tell her that this was the express lane? Oh well, I am a patient person, right? This is okay. I’ll be out of here and speeding on my way in a few minutes.

Oh good, the checker is done scanning her abundant mass of provisions. It’s almost my turn. Hold on a second … the lady is pulling out her wallet, and she isn’t grabbing a debit card. She is grabbing a handful of legal tender and they are not large bills. Ones. She is going to pay for her $70 tab with one-dollar bills! I almost faint from the rapid rush of blood to my head. This is a nightmare.

You know exactly how I felt at that moment because we live in a culture of urgency. We are constantly in a hurry. We always need to be someplace other than where we are, and we need to be there right now.

Let me impart to you what has become an obscured truth in our culture: Activity is not better than rest. We get home from a long day’s work, and we might as well punch an extra-curricular activity timecard because we don’t pause from the bustle until our head hits the pillow. The only problem then is that we stare at the ceiling with blood-shot eyes, wondering what it’s like to sleep.

Here are a few phrases from the Psalms that have been catching my eye lately. “Wait for the Lord.” “Wait patiently for Him.” “I wait for you, Oh Lord.” “For you I will wait all day.” “I wait for the Lord more than the watchmen wait for the morning.” “I wait patiently for the Lord.” “I wait in silence for God.” “Those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land.” (Psalms 27, 37, 25, 25, 130, 40, 62, 37 respectively.) And from Isaiah: “Those who wait on the Lord will find new strength” (40:31).

Possible Preaching Angle:

The next time you feel rushed or overwhelmed, remind yourself of God’s words which tell us to rest in him. We most affectively feel the power of God in us when we patiently sit in silence before his throne. Turn off your electronic devices or whatever distraction is before you just now, and spend some real time in silence, waiting on the Lord. “It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones” (Psalm 127:2).

In what may be one of the most Italian things that has ever happened, the Italian State Police rushed a donor kidney from Padua to Rome for a transplant in a Lamborghini Huracan. The journey is around 300 miles, but with the help of a specially-outfitted supercar, the police made it happen in just about two hours at an average speed of 143 mph—and that’s a journey that normally takes around six.

Yes, the Italian Police own a Lamborghini and use it as a regular ol’ patrol vehicle most of the time. It’s outfitted with lights, a police computer, and other equipment for traffic stops and arrests. That said, though, the machine isn’t exactly ideal for the day-to-day (where, exactly, do you intend to put someone that you’ve arrested?). It’s still cool for these more extreme circumstances, though.

But for this specific instance, the “frunk” (front trunk) came in handy. The police force turned it into a refrigerated compartment for organ transport for the delivery of other temperature-sensitive medical supplies. With a 202-mph top speed and a 0-60 time of 2.8 seconds, it’s one efficient vehicle for these high-speed runs.

The Italian police actually own a few different Lambos. It’s a pretty solid use of a supercar, although folks on Twitter have wondered why Italian officials didn’t use a helicopter to transport the kidney. A Google Maps view of the starting hospital, doesn’t seem to show a helipad or an easily accessible flat area nearby, so a Lamborghini likely made the most sense here.

I hope the receiver of the kidney knows how it was transported. I know that, personally, I’d work to make sure that kidney is well-appreciated for as long as it lasts.

Possible Preaching Angles:

1) Good Samaritan; Social Action – We should always be ready to speed help to others in time of need; 2) Action; Help from God; Prayer, answered – When God decides to take action, he moves faster than we can imagine, help is immediate (Isa. 65:24).

When Dominican catcher Yermín Mercedes made his Major League Baseball debut for the Chicago White Sox, he impressed fans and team officials alike with his offensive production. He got at least one base hit in an MLB-record eight consecutive games. Unfortunately, his bat eventually cooled off. Mercedes then experienced an extended batting slump that resulted in a demotion to the minor league Charlotte Knights.

Mercedes took his fans by surprise when he abruptly announced his retirement from baseball after a Knights game on July 21st. That night, his Instagram post included the words “I’m stepping aside from baseball indefinitely…God bless you, it’s over.”

At the time, White Sox manager Tony La Russa affirmed Mercedes’ baseball ability, saying that “it could be he’s just feeling frustrated. ... I’ll try to explain to him he’s got a big-league future.”

It’s unclear if the call that made a difference was from La Russo, from Charlotte manager Wes Helms, or from someone else. But the next day, Mercedes showed up for work, posting the following apology:

My dream is to be an established player in the major leagues. I asked God to give me that opportunity and I got it 3 months ago. I owe myself to my family, my organization and my fans [to continue]. I asked again for forgiveness if I have failed them. Baseball is in my blood…and I thank God for guiding me to the right path and to make the correct decision. To those going to a similar situation, forget the criticisms and bad comments. They will always exist to trample on your personality.

Since the apology, Mercedes has continued to play well. On August 16th, he even went 5-for-5 from the plate, homering twice.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Reconsidering a decision and acting in humility have the potential to redeem and even turn around even the worst of circumstances. God's grace and power gives us access to strength outside of ourselves when we need it the most

Are you impatient with slowpokes and frustrated by waiting? If so, you will identify with what Chelsea Wald wrote in an article:

Not long ago I diagnosed myself with the recently identified condition of sidewalk rage. It’s most pronounced when it comes to a certain friend who is a slow walker. Last month, as we sashayed our way to dinner, I found myself biting my tongue, thinking, I have to stop going places with her if I ever want to … get there!

Slowness rage is not confined to the sidewalk, of course. Slow drivers, slow Internet, slow grocery lines—they all drive us crazy. Slow things drive us crazy because the fast pace of society has warped our sense of timing. Things that our great-great-grandparents would have found miraculously efficient now drive us around the bend. Patience is a virtue that’s been vanquished in the Twitter age.

Make no mistake: Society continues to pick up speed. In his book, Social Acceleration, Hartmut Rosa informs us that the speed of human movement from pre-modern times to now has increased by a factor of 100. The speed of communications has skyrocketed by a factor of 10 million, and data transmission has soared by a factor of around 10 billion. A study found that even our walking speed has increased by 10 percent since the 1990s.

Wald concludes:

So, on a recent stroll with my slow-walking friend, I think fondly of her charming sense of humor, our fun outings, her support during tough times. As we walk, languidly, to a restaurant, I feel momentarily free of my sidewalk rage. Yet as this warm feeling passes over me in the restaurant, I begin quietly raging at the server, the kitchen, and I’m even raging at my rage; it feels like it’s lasting forever.

Possible Preaching Angles:

1) Frustration; Impatience; Waiting – Frustrated by slow people and slow answers to prayer? Slow down, take a deep breath, and try counting your blessings. Thank God for all the conveniences you enjoy in your life. Recognize that God has a purpose in delaying your timing. 2) Pastor; Minister – Don’t rush from one person to the next after the service or become frustrated if one congregant requires extra time. Give each person your full attention and care, showing them that they matter to God.

Consider this point made by W. E. Adams, C. S. Lewis' spiritual director for a season:

We can advance along the road to perfection only by walking closely with [Jesus]. And as we watch His way of dealing with the countless problems and troubles that beset His life, we achieve wisdom as to how to meet our own. But to walk with Jesus is to walk with a slow, unhurried pace. Hurry is the death of prayer and only impedes and soils our work. It never advances it.