There are four schools within a mile of one another in my small town, so that means weekday-morning traffic gets heavy. I drive two of my girls to school, while one rides the bus. On the days when my bus-rider runs late and I have to take all three of them to three different schools, we are in a race against the clock and the traffic.

There’ve been police officers to direct traffic at two of the schools, and this week a third officer has been posted on one of the main roads between the schools to keep traffic orderly and moving. Before the third officer showed up, drivers had to depend on the kindness of one another in order to make left turns. Now we sit mindlessly behind our steering wheels, waiting for the motion of an orange-gloved hand. We no longer need to pay close attention to fellow drivers.

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Perhaps the Law causes Christians to be mindless as those who follow it simply need to be told what to do. Maybe instead of following the Law, we should listen to the Spirit within us who leads us to acts of love, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

The Law takes away our humanity, our need to pay attention to one another. It keeps us focused solely on our own lives and needs. The Spirit tells us to look beyond ourselves to see the needs of others, and nudges us to act in their best interest.

Perhaps we are much better off without adhering to the Law. While it may keep us orderly and give us the appearance that we’re moving through life in a nice, neat manner, we’re deaf to the Spirit that whispers the truths that make us each unique. It’s the Spirit within who prompts us to stop and allow a left turn, while the Law demands obedience at the expense of ignoring those with whom we do life.