The Wrong Road

There is a way that seems right to a man but the end is the way of death

(Proverbs 16:25)

Have you  ever been lost?  On a road that you thought was taking you in the right direction only to discover that it led the opposite way?  I have been.  Twice.  Though both were many years ago, I still get a squishy feeling in my stomach when I think how differently they could have turned out.

Even though the two incidents happened years apart, they had a number of things in common.  Both took place while driving on less-than-familiar country roads.  Shortcuts to where I was going.  Both had Y’s in the road and each time I chose wrongly because it looked like the direction I needed to go.   And looked the most traveled.  But both ended in potential danger.

The first took place in the 1960’s.  That time I ended up in a pasture where my right front tire fell into a deep hole.  When I tried to back out, the grass was wet with dew which made my tires spin.  I was in the middle of nowhere and no one knew where I was.  It was in the days before GPS or cell phones so there was no way to know my location or call for help.   

As I sat wondering what to do, I remembered passing a house with a light in the window a few hundred yards back.  I had no idea what kind of people lived there or if I’d be in more danger approaching them, but there seemed to be no other choice, so I got out and began to walk.  It was so dark I could hardly see my hand in front of my face, but as I came closer, I was able to make out the outline of a small building.  The light had been extinguished but had it not been burning when I passed, I would have missed it altogether.

Approaching, I saw there was a fence with a gate in it.  Instead of going inside, I hollered for help.  After what seemed like a long time, but was only a few minutes, a woman’s voice asked what I wanted.  As it turned out, she and her sister, both elderly, lived there alone.  They had seen my car go by but assuming it was yet another case of people looking for somewhere to drink or do drugs, they were hesitant to acknowledge me.  They were as leary of me as I was of them.

But once I identified myself and explained my situation, they graciously agreed to take me home.  Which, as it turned out, was miles away in the opposite direction than which I had been going.  The next morning, a friend took me to retrieve my car.

The second incident, many years later when we were living in a different state,was laced with even greater potential danger than the first.  That time I was headed to my daughter and son-in-law’s farm in another community.  It was late afternoon, and wanting to reach their place before dark, I decided to take a shortcut which I had ridden on once before with her driving.  

This time I encountered several Y’s and each time I took the wrong one.  All went well until the last road turned into a steep gravel path  that ended at the bottom of a hill. By this time, it was dark and  I was surprised when my car lights showed water ahead.  So confused was I by this time that for a split second, I considered driving into it.

Then two realizations hit me at once.  My daughter and I had not driven through any water.   And this was not a low water bridge with a creek running over it.  I had ended up on a launch site for small boats to enter the James River.

With my stomach in my throat, I turned around and headed back the way I’d come. Back to the main road.  It took longer going the long way around but eventually I safely ended up at my desired destination. 

Many people are on the wrong road in life and don’t even know it.  Or, if they do, they are subconsciously blocking out the truth.  Just as there was evidence I had been on the wrong roads, but kept assuring myself that I was headed in the right direction, they are tuning out God’s urging that they turn around and go toward Him.

Jesus talked about the fact that there are two ways to go.  He said one leads to life while the other leads to destruction:

Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way

that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.

Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and 

there are few who find it.

(Matthew 7:13-14)

Two roads.  The one most people are traveling leads to separation from God. The one less-traveled leads to union with Him and all that is good.  It is a choice each person must make.  God doesn’t force anyone to choose His way.  However, each will reside in eternity according to their choice.

The Christian life is not always the easiest way to go because it is counter to our culture, and comparably-speaking, not many choose to take that path in life.  However, all things considered, it is the best way in the long run.   Not only does Jesus promise to come alongside us to share our burdens, but in the end there is everlasting life in Heaven with Him.

It may be that some who are on the wrong road simply do not know how to access the correct way.  But Jesus made it clear when He said:

I am the way, the truth and the life.  

No one comes to the Father

except through Me

(John 14:6)

So that no one should miss the way, God’s Word spells it out as clearly as ABC:

A - accept that you are a sinner and the penalty for sin is eternal separation from God:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

(Romans 3:23)

The wages of sin is death but the gift of God

 is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord

(Romans 6:23)

B - believe that Jesus came and died to pay the penalty for your sin:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son

that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, 

but that the world through Him might be saved

(John 3:16-17)

C - confess that you believe in Jesus as your Savior and the payment for your sin:

If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart

that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes unto righteousness and

with the mouth confession is made unto salvation

(Romans 10:9-10)

With these road signs in mind, which road are you on?  It is a question each of us must ask our self at some point in life.  It is urgent that we make sure we have chosen the right road and are headed toward our desired destination,  If you have never considered the direction you are headed,  I implore you to make your decision wisely for there is definitely a wrong road which ends in disaster.

Lord, help those who are headed in the wrong direction
become fully aware of the danger they are in.
To turn around and look to You before it is too late.  Amen.

                                                                           Glenda Collins Inman