Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK

“Stay in Your Lane”
“Accept correction, and you will find life. Reject correction and you will miss the road....” – Proverbs 10:17 (CEV)

I remember a time as a teenager I was driving home after church; it was around 8 at night and dark. I had only been driving a short time and was not prepared for what I was witnessing. The car coming from the opposite direction was on MY SIDE of the road. It was approximately 200 yards away but there was just enough panic in me and I was uncertain as to what to do.
Again…I had only been driving a short while and my inexperience was really showing. Do I drive on the other side? Do I pull over and wait for the car to pass? I just did not know what to do! Fortunately the car corrected itself and moved over into its lane—so any decision on my part was made for me and I was able to go on my way with no problems and I was home within just a few minutes…but it is an event that I will never forget. Obviously when automobiles became the popular mode of transportation someone came up with the idea to create “lanes” giving drivers safe passage to their destination. The key(s) to safe driving is simple, obey the rules of the road—stay in your lane and then hope other drivers do the same. I find that the rules for living a successful life in Christ are fairly similar if you think about it. Jesus said: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” – Matthew 7:13-14
I think back to that night and wonder, what if the driver of that other car had not corrected their course? What if that person had continued to come towards me, knowing full-well the probability that it could cause us to crash? It is a haunting thought needless to say but it is the way so many choose to live their lives! They live going down the wrong side of the road knowing that at some point there is going to be a crash but they continue down the same destructive path. Listen to how the Amplified Bible interprets this verse: “He who heeds instruction and correction is [not only himself] in the way of life [but also] is a way of life for others. And he who neglects or refuses reproof [not only himself] goes astray [but also] causes to err and is a path toward ruin for others.”
Translation: When we “stay in our lanes” (so-to-speak), it is actually a safeguard for others. Allow me to illustrate this in another way. I will never forget the Christmas of 1982. Our oldest daughter was three months old and we were spending Christmas Eve with my mother who lived in Colorado Springs. Our intent was to get up on Christmas day and make the 90 minute drive to Denver to spend Christmas day with my wife’s family. (Take note that it was a 90 minute drive).
Late that afternoon it began to snow, which being Colorado—that was nothing unusual. When we got up Christmas day there was about 10 inches of snow, which under normal circumstances was not that big of an issue.
We made the decision to go to Denver giving no thought to what was before us. You see, it was not until we almost reached the northern city limits of Colorado Springs did we realize that the further north you traveled, the worse things were. We should have known that there was a problem when we did not see any south-bound traffic coming from Denver but with it being Christmas day…we just figured people did not want to get out. When we got to the town of Monument (just outside the city limits), the Highway Patrol had stopped traffic. What made matters worse was that there was no way for us to turn around—there was no safe outlet and with cars behind us we were trapped.
Now…let me remind you that we had a three-month-old with us. To conserve gas we had to turn off the engine for at least a few minutes at a time. After about two hours, the Highway Patrol finally allowed traffic to pass. By the way…did I fail to mention that we were on a major Interstate? I-25 to be precise.
I mention that because there was only one lane of traffic opened. The Transportation Department had trucks “create a path” for cars to follow which accounted for the two hour delay. And the only way you knew were okay was by following the car in front of you because you could not see a lane in which to drive in. It was the same way on both sides.
By the time we reached my in-laws house (which was on the North side of Denver) it had taken us SIX HOURS!! But we made it! And that was the bottom line.
It was when we had arrived that we discovered that the storm that had dumped 10 inches of snow in Colorado Springs was far worse in the Denver area! In fact, Denver received 28 inches of snow in less than 12 hours…literally shutting the city down!! Had we known that prior to setting out we would have delayed our trip a couple of days…but as it was, had it not been for some cars that had made a path for us to follow…it would have been impossible. If we would have gotten off of that path…the results could have been deadly!
Accept the fact that the road at times will not be an easy one. Stay disciplined and on track. Follow the path laid out by God and He will keep you safe.
Pastor J. T. Carnell