A team was on a job site adding a lane to an existing road. It had been a long project but finally they were ready to pour the concrete. The orange construction barrels were out as they had been for weeks. The concrete trucks were on hand and the workers productive as they spread the concrete to a finished surface. They were making good progress, and with the weather cooperating the completed sections were setting up and beginning to harden.
They’d just finished pouring the final driveway when an impatient driver made a critical mistake. He decided to disregard the warning signs and proceed on his own. He ignored the equipment and the workers and whipped out of traffic. He drove around the barricades and onto the new concrete. He didn’t notice a problem right away. But as he continued to travel down the newly poured lane, he realized something was definitely wrong. His car began to sink, slowly at first as he continued to move forward. But then he made a fatal mistake. He sought to escape the mess he was in by changing his course. But once again, his choice was disastrous. He turned right into the freshly poured driveway. I can only imagine the thoughts going through his mind as he felt his car, and him with it, sink into the oozing, wet concrete, trapped by his poor choices.
How often in life are we like that driver? Instead of waiting for God’s perfect timing, we grow impatient. We believe we can navigate our own course well. Unable to see the bigger picture, the better future that God is planning, we focus instead on the immediate situation at hand and begin to doubt. We turn from His path to what we believe to be a better way, often ignoring the signs warning of trouble ahead.
God’s ways are not our ways and it’s rare that we get a glimpse of His bigger picture. We often don’t understand the reason for the trouble we encounter on the roadways of life. The good news is that we don’t need to. God’s promise remains true. When we follow His purpose, trusting in Him, He will make all things work for good for those who love Him. No matter the circumstances, God’s character remains the same. Although we may not witness the final outcome we can trust that it will be righteous.
Message for the Journey:
When we encounter troubles on the roadway of life—road blocks, traffic jams and construction—we may be tempted to climb into the driver’s seat and make our own decisions apart from God. Let’s remember that there are dangers only He can see. What may seem a delay or blockage to us may in fact be a blessing in disguise. Hold on to the promise given in Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.” If we do, we will be certain to stay out of the mire.
©AnnWilds2012
(editted from 2010 post)
Reading this post I thought about the cross roads we encounter in life, and what I do is stand still and don't move because if I make the wrong choice then I have two problems in which God has to fix up for me. Either way traffic jams are nerve reckoning and so are the ones we get in life. But we must remain calm which is not always so easy to do.
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