We live on a cul-de-sac – a French term which means, “place where vehicles turn around because the driver is too lazy to put his vehicle in reverse.” Realtors tout them as places for folks who crave quiet and privacy. Ours is more like the drive through at Chick-Fil-A at noon.
I suspect that Tripadvisor lists circling our cul-de-sac as the #1 thing to do in White Oak, Texas. “Where’s Waldo?” I’ve seen him here. When the Christmas lights are up, I have watched people revolve around that circle three times to make sure they don’t miss a twinkle.
The actual French translation of the term cul-de-sac is, “the bottom of a sack.” Yep, that’s where I live.
A cul-de-sac is pretty much a dead-end – one way in and one way out. However, you almost never find a sign at the entry to a street with a cul-de-sac warning you that it is a dead-end.
Which is why more than one person has unknowingly turned down our street, to eventually circle back to where they started.
That sounds a lot like a guy named Samson from the book of Judges. He started life with two parents that deeply loved the God of Israel. It is also said that the Lord uniquely blessed him (13:24-25). Because of this, he was well on the road to success in life, but silly Samson frequently chose streets with cul-de-sacs instead.
He wanted a wife but looked among women who did not share his faith. He overruled the objections of his parents and guidelines of his God to get her. But she betrayed him and then became the wife of his friend (14:1-20). Samson pursued the cul-de-sac of sensual desire but then found himself alone.
Samson had a big ego. He wanted to be regarded as witty, so he created a riddle. He bet the Philistines that they couldn’t figure it out, but they outsmarted him. Samson was humiliated and wreaked revenge by killing 30 of them. He pursued the cul-de-sac of his ego but found himself humiliated (14:5-20).
The Lord chose Samson to lead His people in the ways of righteousness, but Samson was more concerned with the cul-de-sac of self-determination. His reckless self-willed behavior caused His people to reject his leadership and then deliver him over to their enemies (15:9-13)
Samson continued to pursue his dead-end cul-de-sacs until the Philistines finally captured him, gouged out his eyes and put him in chains (16:21-27).
If we aren’t careful, we too could naively end up on a street that gets us to nowhere. The thoroughfare we really need is found in John 14:6, where Jesus said to us, “I am the way…”
Jesus is the way; the only way to the Father, and the only way to do life
When we choose Jesus as the way, we trust Him to forgive our sins and make things right between us and God. But we also follow the path He lays out for us. We don’t need GPS because we have His Holy Spirit, to guide and direct us and His Word to fill in all the details.
It’s a narrow way to be sure. Jesus said, “How narrow is the gate and difficult the way that leads to life, and there are few who find it! (Matthew 7:13-14)
And once the path is chosen we must not look back. Jesus also said, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” Luke 9:62. But it is the way we need to go.
Are you aware that Luke, in the book of Acts refers to Christians as people of “The Way?” (Acts 9:2; 19:9; 19:23; 24:14; 24:22)
I love that! We are people of the Way – people who follow the Way. No more dead ends. No more crazy cul-de-sacs, just sure and steady progress on the highway of life that leads to heaven.
A PRAYER: Lord, help us avoid the dead-ends of life. May we walk in the Way.
This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com
May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you
Scriptures passages are from the NETBible ®
Pickle Heaven Press-James R. Johnson 