Life is a Highway

Friends in Christ:
 
Fall is here but the temperatures these last few days of September have been really warm.  Of  course, I’ll take all the warm temps I can get especially knowing what’s coming after Fall.  I’ve really enjoyed our cool nights, windows open, no bugs, and great sleeping.  What a great time of year.  Soon our trees will be taking on all of their Autumn colors and we’ll have consistently cool days (and cooler nights).
 
This past week Susan went to stay with her dad in Owensboro KY.  He had knee surgery and everything went well (Thank you for your prayers).  The kids and I met her on her way home in Brazil (where my parents live).   We saw a hint of reds and yellows in some of the trees.  And…, we saw our share of “Flashing Orange!”
 
Highway construction and road repairs, it seems it never ends.  And in some of those wonderful construction zones was the “grooved” pavement.  You know, it makes that awful noise as you drive on it for miles.  I guess they want to keep you alert (as if the chuck holes didn’t).
 
And I got to thinking how our lives are sometimes like these little stretches of highway.  We go along for awhile and things are running pretty smooth.  Occasionally we hit a bump or a chuck-hole but we pass over them quickly.  But then comes the “change” in the road (the grooves begin) and we know it’s likely to be rough for awhile.  Sometimes life is just like that.
 
The Bible is full of stories that tell us that “those times” come to us all.  However, we do not have to live in fear of them, for God goes before us and helps us through them.  The prophet Isaiah shares with us these words from the Lord, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.  For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior!” (Isaiah 43:1b-3a)
 
It somehow helps us to know that when we face the “change in the road” that if we “look up” we can begin to see the beauty in the trees.  When we “look up” to God and cry out, he is there to hold us.  He comforts and strengthens us.  He brings new radiance to our lives again.  Sometimes we travel on that rough rode for several miles before we can look up, but the Good News is that we can never travel that road alone.  God is always with us and goes before us.
 
May God bless you and your family as we “look up” in awe and wonder at the beautiful colors of Autumn.  May we always “look to God” for his leading and his help in our lives.
 
  Blessings, Pastor Andy