DAY 24 - WARNING SIGNS

“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.” (Mt. 7:13-14, NIV)

Every time I drive through the mountains, I notice the signs warning vehicles of a dangerous decline they are approaching. The signs are a yellowish/orange color and commonly shaped in the form of a diamond. There is a picture of a box-truck going down a steep decline to visually demonstrate the danger ahead. Also, I notice that every so often, there are run-a-way ramps for cars and big trucks to use in case their brakes fail. Honestly, I have never seen any cars or trucks use them. From my perspective, it looks like these ramps are made of deep sand and at the end is a huge berm to completely stop them from going over the mountain. Often, I wondered if the ramps had ever failed to stop someone. That’s a frightening thought!

Can you imagine a person making a conscious decision to continue downward knowing their brakes are not working and the run-a-way ramps wouldn’t stop them? One can argue that perhaps the driver did not have a choice in the matter. It is possible that going down the mountain was the only option he or she had. Well…that is not entirely true. There is still another option.

In our own lives, how often do we ignore the warning signs? Ignoring warning signs has nothing to do with taking risks every once in a while. We are talking about the signals in your life that are telling you that if you continue down this road nothing good is going to come from it or there is disaster at the end. All too often, this is how we treat our spiritual life. We travel down a path with no regard to how damaging it will be to our souls. In today’s world, there are a lot of people traveling down this long wide highway. Jesus said that the safest route is the road that is narrow and less traveled.

If you find yourself with a faulty braking system, instead of taking your chances, simply pull over and call for help. The Lord will come, and he will give you what you need to travel safely!

IronMaker’s Daily Challenge:  Ask God to put someone in your path today so that you may help them and show them the love of Christ.

Prayer:  Lord, in wisdom you have created us and all things. Provide our daily needs and grant us grace and strength to fulfill the ministry to which we have been called. In the name and spirit of Jesus. Amen.

– Job R. and Shawchuck N. A Guide to Prayer. (Nashville, TN: Upper Room Books, 1983) pp 249.

Rev. Dennis Gossett