EXITS

11 Comments

ExitsLast week I was on Interstate 10 traveling west, there’s about 12 lanes of traffic in this particular area. I was in the HOV lane (legally this time!) when I made a mental note of one mile to my intended exit.

I was in a little bit of a hurry and calculated I could reel in another dozen cars or so before I’d make my gradual move over to the turtle lane for my exit.

It never seems to work out exactly as planned, I got within two lanes of the exit lane before I decided I might end up killing myself or someone else in the process. I missed my exit… I was a little frustrated, mostly at myself for not paying close enough attention.

I had lunch a few days later with a good friend and brother, he was sharing with me his desire to draw closer to God. His analogy was his life as a road. “I feel like if I stay on this road it will keep veering me to the left, eventually taking me away from God.” He continued, “I feel like I need to make a hard right and make this change.”

I immediately thought of how many times in my life I missed an exit. I wanted to pass a few more cars and steal a little more time. I think of all the people God offers an exit that want to steal some time or put off His desire for their own.

We as humans always tend to think there will be another chance, another exit in life to pull over and submit to the One who offers the only rest stop that offers true rest. The exit God puts before us offers more than just rest, it also offers peace and joy.

Peace, joy, and rest, while the rest of the world speeds by at warp speed to an unknown destination. Many of us see the exit sign and think, “I have more fuel, I can make it a little further before I have to surrender to the need for The Fuel of my soul.”

Even the lost know that a merciful God is going to offer another out or exit. So they keep the vehicle that houses their souls moving so fast the exits start to become blurs. The super highway of life has never been navigated by any of us, we don’t know how many exits God has planned in front of us.

Often times the road ends without warning. It’s a one-way freeway and once the end is reached, it’s a sheer cliff drop off. The prayer for another exit at this point could be a little too late.

I wonder how many Christians like me sometimes know the freeway and recognize the exits and yet we try to get a few more under our belts before we look for the next exit? The Master knows the needs of our lives, that’s why He offers rest or exits. God knows when our soul needs fuel, we just ignore the blinking “check engine” lights.

These are the times God allows us to breakdown, He knows we need an exit even when we’re too stubborn or ignorant to take them. He allows us to sit roadside in panic or just completely stopped until we come back to our senses.

God then sends out the tow truck and hauls us back to Him. God’s mechanics who sometimes are strangers, sometimes friends ask us, “Didn’t you know you were low on gas”? or, “Didn’t you see or hear the blinking warning signs”? We answer with regret, “Yeah, I just thought I could go a little further on my own.”

Thank God, literally, for those breakdowns. This is His mercy on His chosen. The road doesn’t last forever, everything in this world comes to an end.

We never know when we have passed that “Last Chance For Gas” or “Last Chance For Eternal Life” exit. Once we’re past it, no matter who we are there is knowledge.

The knowledge of truth one exit too late…