Do I need God?

If you ask some people about God they say He doesn't exist - atheists, others might say they are followers of 'God' - religious people, but what about the band of people in the middle? The people who say "I don't need God, I am a good person" - what are they called?
If you ever visit the BBC News web site, go to "Have your say" where the site invites opinions on various news events, for example "Is it OK for a school to ban religious jewellery?", or, "Should Gordon Brown resign?". Many of the opinions expressed (certainly the most recommended ones) are very right-wing but it is the content of some of them which proves the point that people do in fact need God.
On one of the debates, they were asking "How can we control the drug use problem". Most of the recommended answers simply said we should legalise drugs and then be able to control or tax them and then the price would fall and dealers wouldn't make much money any more. An understandable view-point. There are other people however who said that the people who take drugs or deal them should be dealt with consistently and severely so that most people will not risk it. An opposite and equally understandable opinion. So which is right? Of course the answer is that no-one actually knows except God but people (including Christians!) rarely articulate this key fact. People often cite examples in other countries or sometimes pseudo or partial evidence for their view and the strength with which the view is expressed can be incredible despite this underlying ignorance.
So what? If you think for a moment why these people have such strong views when they don't actually know the correct answer you can only come up with one reason: Ego/pride. The fact that I will pour my heart and soul out to argue something that I really have no definitive idea about rather than saying, "i don't really know", or, "I suspect this would happen" says much about me and most other people in the world to some degree or other. It says that I am very inadequate in the knowledge department and I need someone to tell me what to know.
When you look at Jesus' life and when people asked him a question, he NEVER said, "it is six of one and half a dozen of the other", there was no politik. Either he had an answer or the question wasn't relevant and might have been answered in a different way. We believe of course that his answers were from God so we can be sure that they were right. So to go back to my earlier statements, people DO need God because he is the only one who can a) tell you the correct answers to something or b) tell you that the question is irrelevant and requires no answer.
I sometimes wonder how many of the "Have your say"s Jesus would write in to and what He would say!!

People who annoy me on roads

The roads can be pleasurable places to be. Doing 60 on a quiet country road in sunshine with music or maybe no music is bliss. But driving can also be strenuous, arduous, annoying (and expensive). I decided to make a list of people who increase the stress levels on the road for different reasons. How many of these do you relate to?

1. Old people. Now to be fair not all old people fit the stereo type but you know the score, driving at 50mph in a 60mph behind a Nissan Micra and lo and behold, it is driven by some old gipper. To make it worse, they are allowed to drive during the rush hour to their unimportant meetings while the rest of us are trying to get to work.


2. Motor homes and caravans. Great equipment to go on holiday with, fun to drive across Canada or the US with but they are NOT made for UK roads (except perhaps the motorways) they rarely drive at their legal speed limit and don't move out the way for those of us who do. Others drive way over their limit and wonder why their chavvy 4x4 ends up on its roof.


3. White van drivers. Or more specifically nowadays van drivers of varied coloured vans! Nothing specifically against the van but it is annoying when so many of their drivers think they are exempt from the mobile phone usage laws. Also every now and then you get one doing 90mph or more down the motorway.


4. People who don't overtake. When you are doing 50 in a 60mph limit, generally you feel slowed down even if it wouldn't add hours to your journey time. What is therefore more infuriating than a queue of people behind a slow vehicle, none of whom appear to be willing and/or able to overtake! Sometimes vehicles need to travel slowly and one reason for making lorries go 45 on an A road is so the rest of us can overtake easily.


5. Middle lane drivers. Well not so much middle lane drivers as people on the motorway who don't follow the legal pattern of driving which is in the left hand lane except when overtaking. The number of times I have been boxed in by someone sitting in the middle lane only going slightly faster than me and who could have been behind me and given me room to pull out. This is not helped by the lawlessness with speed I experience on motorways in general.


6. Policemen not being there when people are doing really bad things. The number of times I've seen someone hitting 110 or more in the outside and I've prayed for a cop car to pull them over and throw the book at them. It would given us a reason to obey the law whereas it is safest in the UK to dirve at 80-85 to keep up with everyone else. Apparently there are limited resources. Maybe they could take some of the money they give to welfare and teachers and pay for more policemen!


7. Speed cameras. I don't mind speed enforcement but like most people I appreciate it when context is taken into account. A policeman will not stop you going 40 in a 30 in the middle of the night because conditions might well be favourable, however he would stop you doing 25 in a 30 if it is icy because it would be dangerous. A speed camera would do the opposite and does not distinguish between safe and unsafe driving or tailgaiting and does not provide the leaway of reason on limits.


8. People who go ridiculuously over the speed limit. Despite not liking speed cameras, I also get annoyed by people going really fast, usually on motorways. Scenario: driving at 70mph in the middle lane and approaching a lorry overtaking another lorry and need to pull out. Look in mirror and should be able to pull out without thinking if the space next to me is clear because no-one should be going faster than me. Reality: Someone in the outside lane is going 90-95mph so I have spend time working out if I have time to pull out and if not waste another 10 seconds waiting for a gap, perhaps using my brakes or slowing down considerably while billy whizz is going past. Another reason for the police to be really tough on these things.


9. Lorries overtaking other lorries on the motorways - 'nough said.


10. Every man and his dog having a blue disabled badge, somewhat takes away the point of yellow lines when they are all blocked by blue-badgers!


11. Toyota Pious, I mean Prius. It's not great, it looks pretty grim and when driven like most people do its economy is unimpressive for its price. I still fail to see why car companies haven't done something much more drastic. You can buy electric cars already so why not from the major manufacturers? Come on people, if I could buy a little car that is powered off the leccy and could do up to 70mph for, say, 100 miles before needing a relatively quick recharge then I would buy one. I saw this one they sell in London but you have to get it serviced and the range is not high enough to get from my house to a service agent - nice!