Mark Reidy: Freeway crawls and self preservation

Each time I find myself crawling along the Kwinana Freeway in peak hour traffic I feel that I am caught up in a far more complex global crisis.

Having a great deal of time to analyse traffic movement when there isn’t much, I have begun to notice that when it comes to lane-merging many people become territorial and the consequent bottleneck ensures that everyone comes to a standstill.
I believe that the problem lies not simply with a lack of space, but rather with a majority mindset of those behind the wheel that they have a “right” to the road in front of them and they are reluctant to relinquish it.
It is a mentality that has moulded mankind throughout history. 
The instincts of survival that motivated our early ancestors to compete for food and shelter – primarily a fear of starvation and death – still remain driving forces for our behaviour today.
These impulses of self-preservation are well and truly alive and they become very obvious when someone invades “our space” or stands in the way of us getting or keeping what we believe we need or are entitled to. 
It is, sadly, a principle that continues to corrupt us – as individuals and as a nation, and at every level in between.
The general consensus seems to be that the recent financial crisis was triggered by such a “get what I can” mentality and even attitudes towards immigration seem to have our self-preservation juices flowing.
We live in a society that has become moulded by our innate fears and this insecurity becomes more deeply embedded when it is threatened in any way, causing us to become more agitated, defensive and self-focused.
We begin to see the world as we see the road in front of us. It is mine, I have a right to it and you will not enter my space unless I give you permission. It is an attitude that seems to be firmly entrenched – but does that make it right? It is not that I advocate anarchy on the roads or on the borders, but I do see a necessity to assess, as individuals, what emotional force it is that fuels our behaviour and attitude towards others. Is it fear or love? Are we driven by self-preservation or self-sacrifice?
It can be a very challenging exercise to confront our deepest instincts – those spontaneous thoughts that automatically ignite our first reactions. What happens to us when someone wants to occupy the road in front of us? What emotions are evoked by the thought of sharing “our” land and resources with others? We need to begin by questioning our whole attitude toward ownership. Why do we believe that we have a right to something? What entitles us to own or possess anything? Is it because fear is embedded in the foundation of any form of ownership? That we are driven by our instincts of survival to pursue a state of self-reliance?
It is why, I believe, Jesus made a point to the rich young man that, in order to reach the kingdom of Heaven, he had to forgo all that he had. It was not necessarily what he owned that held him back, but rather his attachment to what he owned.
Jesus recognised where this young man found his security and realised that it was taking his focus from God. He was asking him to let go of the fear that bound him to this world and to trust in a Heavenly Father who would provide for all of his needs.
It is no different to what God is asking of us today – from the way we drive to the way our politicians legislate. He knows that it is the only way for us to keep moving forward toward the destination that He desires for us.