Selah

According to Wikipedia:

Selah (Hebrew: סֶלָה‎, also transliterated as selāh) is a word used 74 times in the Hebrew Bible that means GOD HAS SPOKEN.  – it used 71 times in the Psalms and three times in Habakkuk  – and is a difficult concept to translate. (It should not be confused with the Hebrew word sela‘ (Hebrew: סֶלַע‎) which means "rock.") It is probably either a liturgico-musical mark or an instruction on the reading of the text, something like "stop and listen". Selah can also be used to indicate that there is to be a musical interlude at that point in the Psalm. The Amplified Bible translates selah as "pause, and think of that". It can also be interpreted as a form of underlining in preparation for the next paragraph.

I used to wince at red lights. Okay, I'd more than wince. I'd complain, usually inwardly, but sometimes aloud. "Oh, no!" you'd hear me say. "Not another red light!" And truthfully, sometimes it seemed (or seems) that I'd hit one red light after another. "These lights are so badly timed," I'd grouse. I'd fret about poor fuel efficiency. I'd worry about being -- not just late, but -- later.

I have a bad habit of being too much of an optimist, not allowing extra time in transit for such things as red lights, construction, traffic jams, and that's the kind of thing that makes you late. I'm getting better...

Anyhow, back to the topic at hand. One day, while sitting at a red light, it came to me. Stewing was a poor use of my time. Did it get me anything? (Other than aggravated, that is.) No. Obviously.

What if I were to use red lights profitably? How could I use them profitably?

Give thanks in all things. While it may seem silly to you, it came to me (while sitting at a red light) that I could be using red lights as a time to praise. To meditate on Scripture. To contemplate my blessings. To give thanks. (See 1 Thess. 5:18 and Eph. 5:20)

The idea of "selah" seemed to fit. I'd heard a definition of "selah" in a sermon some time ago; the preacher had called it a time to pause and reflect on what had just been said (in the Psalm we were reading), or the deep breath before the dive into the next section, or both.

Practicing "selah-ness" at red lights has totally changed my driving attitude. Now instead of an "oh, no!" reaction to a yellow light announcing a red soon to follow, I (usually) am reminded that God is there in the midst of my busyness, my hurry. It's a sort of tug on my spirit, a signal to slow down and think about what's really important.

I'm sure it's done my blood pressure some good, too.