Driving a car can bring out the worst in Christians.

I heard about a stressed-out woman in a hurry, who was tailgating a slow driver. As they approached the traffic light, the light turned yellow, so the man in front of her slowed down and stopped as it turned red, rather than trying to accelerate through the intersection. The tailgating woman was furious. She hit the horn, screaming in frustration that now she would have to wait at the red light.

As she was in the middle of her rant, the woman heard a tap at her window and looked up into the face of a police officer. He ordered her out of the car with her hands up. Then he took her to the police station, where she was searched, fingerprinted, photographed and put in a cell. After a couple of hours, a guard approached the jail cell and opened the door. She was escorted back to the desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal belongings.

He said, “I’m very sorry for the mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing the horn, flipping off the guy in front of you and cussing up a blue streak. I noticed the ‘What Would Jesus Do’ bumper sticker, the ‘Follow Me to Sunday School’ bumper sticker, and the Christian fish emblem on the trunk. Naturally, I assumed you had stolen the car.”

Reminds me of something that actually happened to me.

Once when I was pastor of First Baptist Church, Poplarville, Miss., I was driving my car in town, and came to a four-way stop. I was the first car to stop at the intersection, so I started to go. However, another car approached the same intersection from the other street, barely slowed down, and then went ahead, crossing in front of me. I couldn’t believe it! The nerve of this driver to steal my right of way! I sat on the horn to express my displeasure. Then I got a good look at the driver, and saw a lady who was a member of my congregation. My face turned as red as the stop sign.

Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16, NIV). I didn’t give off any light that day, just a lot of heat. I was thankful the cops didn’t arrest me for stealing the preacher’s car.

Read this column each Thursday for a mix of humor and religion. You can read more “Holy Humor” on the Web page of First Baptist Church of Rincon at www.fbcrincon.com.