Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. --Romans 13:1
Today I lead the devotion before the chapter meeting with the topic of Respect for Authority. During the week that I was preparing, God brought to mind a situation when I was a teenager where I was disrespectful to an authority figure in my life.
The memory was triggered by my daughter Abby. One day I accompanied her for a workout in which she was training for a half marathon. We did several moderately paced repeat quarter miles on the Trestle Trail. After three 2-minute strides, I asked her, "How many more?" to which she replied, "Five".
At that moment I had a "Flashback" to a time when I was a freshman running track at UMass Amherst. Whenever Coach Banda asked me and my teammates to do repeat quarters, we whined and complained at him for the whole workout.
That spring, my Pastor preached a sermon on Romans 13:1 and challenged the congregation to examine their lives to see if they were being disrespectful to authority figures in their live.
I was guilty as charged. I decided to apologize to Coach Banda for my bad attitude an disrespect of his authority. The workouts didn't get any easier but I stopped complaining with the rest of the girls and my attitude changed.
God blessed my running that season and my times improved and I was invited to compete in the NCAA Division 1 Eastern Collegiate Championships in New York. (picture)
I told this story to the RI HOPE student leaders as an example. They probably can't image me as a teenager, much less a division one hurdler. But this true story illustrates how God can bless a life that is submitted to Him.
I finished the devotion with this prayer: Father, thank you for the people of authority in our lives. Thank you for leading and guiding us. Help us show respect for the people you have put in place.