FIRST GLIMPSE

The Intersection

I caught my breath when I saw him start boldly into the busy intersection where six lanes of rush hour traffic whizzed along without slowing. A funny-looking old codger—graying, grizzled, and scarred, with a big nose—he seemed to move at a snail’s pace into a veritable no-man’s land. I flinched as the first car swerved to miss him, narrowly averting a catastrophe.

“Surely he will turn back,” I thought.

No! Heedless of the imminent danger, he kept moving—directly into the path of another speeding car. I closed my eyes. I couldn’t watch. Tires squealed, and I waited for the inevitable thump. When it didn’t come, I peeked. An angry driver shook his head as he circled the interloper warily, honking his horn. The old fellow paused and slowly followed the noise with his head as if listening intently.

That’s when it hit me. “He’s blind! He doesn’t know where he is. He has no idea how much danger he is in.”

For a moment, I considered dashing out into traffic myself to pull him from danger. “But then,” I pondered, “is it worth risking life and limb to save a mole?”

With images of unsightly molehills running through my imagination, I settled back into the safety of my seat to watch the drama unfold. With big, ungainly front feet thrashing the blacktop, the mole continued his arduous death march across the intersection. To my surprise (and relief) he avoided death by tire, eventually reaching the far curb.

A moment later, he disappeared into fresh sod at the edge of a construction site where I am sure he happily continues to terrorize the new homeowners. The light turned green, and I drove on with a chuckle. But the picture of that risk-taking rodent stayed with me in the days that followed.

As Christians, how many times do we set out blindly, groping our way through life without purpose or direction, blundering through dangerous territory without a clear plan of action? The writer of Proverbs frowned on lives not guided by the Word of God, reminding us, “where there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18).

In Luke 14, Jesus encouraged His disciples to consider the direction of their lives carefully, just as they would pore over plans for an upcoming construction
project (Luke 14:27-29). Put simply—it pays to have a plan!

Don’t get me wrong. God doesn’t always reveal the minute details of His specific will, and I’m sure that is for our benefit. Like a mole in rush-hour traffic, the reality of our situation would probably scare us to death!

About the Writer: Eric K. Thomsen is managing editor of ONE Magazine. Contact him at eric@nafwb.org.