In high school I didn’t like science class but I always loved when it was lab day. I had an amazing physics teacher who always thought outside the box and wanted us to learn science and maybe, even love it as much as he did. On lab day he would stretch the rules by taking us on field trips, bringing in larger than life props and he always made it a hands on experience. I don’t remember much about the classroom, but I remember almost all of the labs. Early in the semester we learned about Newton’s first law of motion – things at rest tend to stay at rest and things in motion tend to stay in motion unless there is an unbalanced force acting against it. I remember on lab day he brought us out into the parking lot and declared we were going to have a race – girls vs guys. He had 2 cars placed in neutral and said that we would have a race to see which car could get across the parking lot (and stopped) the quickest – one pushed by the girls and one pushed by the guys. Obviously, the guys got all pumped up and knew we would crush the girls. On go, the girls struggled to get the car moving while the guy’s car was moving quickly. At halfway across the parking lot we were moving the car as fast as we could run and the girls were barely moving at a walk. Then, at 90% of the way across the parking lot we realized we had a problem and we learned something practical about Newton’s first law. Things in motion tend to stay in motion. All of the guys attempted to grab the bumper to drag it and slow the car down, but it was too late. We watched in disbelief as our car bounced over the curb at the end of the parking lot and kept rolling for another 100 yards in the direction of the baseball field. Remember our teacher was a little unorthodox and stretched the “rules.” After 15 minutes of intense effort we retrieved the car, out of breath, and humbled. We now understood Newton’s First Law at a whole new level.
I believe Newton’s First Law of Motion can encourage us in all aspects of our lives. As we start a new year, many of us want to change something or start something or maybe we find ourselves feeling stuck, waiting for the next thing to happen in our lives. How many times do we find ourselves rationalizing with ourselves that we will start that new healthy pattern, the next advancing step, living out responsibly when we graduate, when we have money, when things are less crazy, or when we have more time or freedom? When we are making these rationalizations we are unconsciously declaring that we are not in motion. We are saying that we are waiting for something to happen before we move. I have witnessed so many times in my life where I have stopped moving forward in my dreams, my life, my relationships, because I was waiting for something to happen. The problem I see with not being in motion is that it usually leads us to settle into an attitude of entitlement. Have you ever thought or heard someone say – I will make a difference and get moving in life when someone helps me or I would be healthy if someone paid for my gym membership or health supplement program. The truth is that when we are not in motion, we tend to stay still. If we want to see change we must first see where we are not in motion and then do something to get in motion. Make a first step. Start a conversation. Start a work out. Start investing in people that matter most to you. It more than likely will not be easy. But here is the good news – once you are in motion you tend to stay in motion.
Newton’s First Law also is applicable to our spiritual life and understanding of God and His plan for our life. If you feel stuck in your relationship with God, it may be because you are not in motion. I realize you may not be in motion in your relationship with God because of a past hurt by someone in the church or because of a personal mistake. I am sorry that when you were in motion with God that something or someone cut in on you and a force stopped your motion with God. I really am sorry and it wasn’t right, and I’m really sorry to say those people, that thing that stopped your motion will probably not help you get back in motion. I hate that your future relationship with God is going to depend on whether you will have the strength, the courage, and the determination to go back to church, to open the Bible again, to serve again, to risk sharing your heart to people, to trust Jesus with the plans and future of your life. I’m sorry that beginning or restarting movement will be difficult and won’t seem fair, but I will encourage you that once you begin or begin again advancing in your relationship with God, you will find unbelievable relief, momentum, and life. As a Christian I believe that when the gospel gets ignited in movement, that there is nothing that can stop it from reaching the hurting world. Consider getting in motion again.