Traffic Jam

You are driving down the road, time for vacation! You have gone a little while perhaps a few hours and there is a traffic jam or some type of construction. In order to "save time" perhaps we get off, we try to take a short cut. Early on, you think it is the right decision, but do not realize our huge mistake. After a while, you begin to ask yourself. Should I turn here? Should I go back? One of the worst feelings in the world is to be lost, is it not?  I do not know about you but often when I am lost, my feelings multiply. I become flustered, I become irritated, I become angry, I may get testy (at least I seem to be many of these things). We may tell ourselves, it is not too bad, we can push through...but how long do we go? We may get lucky and find familiar territory, or we even worse get more lost. Just 5 more minutes, or a couple of miles go by, and nothing is better. It is obvious that the situation must change. We cannot afford to continue driving lost. It is time to ask for help. The question then is whom do we ask? We pull over; we ask someone who is experienced, who is knowledgeable and someone who knows the area.

In our Christian lives, we may find ourselves in a traffic jam. We are on cruise control, and we are going well. No major stops, no major accidents for a while, and then in a fury, the storm, the construction zone, and the traffic bog us down.  Rather than pushing through, we think, a shortcut may be in order. Let us avoid anything that is going to slow us down. We think that we know where we are going but we ultimately end up getting lost. We made things harder for ourselves when we strayed, when ironically we tried to make things easier. We thought, well we can set this route aside for a moment, and get back on the real road later. Despite our best efforts, the short cuts will not work. We end up losing more time and expending more energy than if we would have just gone through the jam.  

What do we do then? We cannot afford to remain lost. The best way then for us to proceed is to get back on to the right path, to turn back to Christ. Christ is with us, he has overcome the world, and he knows exactly where we are going and where we need to go. Sometimes that road may take us through roadblocks or trials, maybe sin slows us down too, but we should not be afraid to turn back to God. We should not be afraid to stop and ask for help or directions. Christ came to seek and save the lost. Christ does not promise that the road will be without pain and trial. Going the way of Christ however, should is a joy unparalleled.

Are you and I lost in our Christian lives? The first step that we may need to take is to admit that we are not in control, and that we do not actually know what we are doing. We may need to take the time to pull over and ask for directions. It may be hard, but when we do that, we will find relief, we will find satisfaction, and we will put ourselves in position to proceed to the final destination.

photo credit: tedkerwin via photopin cc