We were on Highway A87 on the Isle of Skye in Scotland, headed for
Portree, when it happened. A terrible accident occurred ahead of us,
blocking the road in both directions. The only vehicles to move were of
the emergency kind. We were stuck, with no way to reach our destination.
At first we thought all would be cleared up within the hour, but
when the hour turned into two, we became aware of the gravity of this
accident.
I decided to go up to see what was happening, and I was
amazed to have to walk down at least two kilometers of stopped cars
before I could even see the scene of the accident. Several firefighters
were working on a crumpled-up car. A man was still stuck in it, and the
firefighters were doing all they could to free him. Immediately I prayed
for the accident victim, and then I returned to my car.
It was
clear that we would be stuck here for at least another couple of hours,
so we checked the map for a way around this section of the road.
Unfortunately, there are no other roads to Portree, except for this tiny
road we could see well below us; and there appeared to be a
long line of cars on it as well, none of which were moving.
One fellow tourist asked a guy in charge of traffic: "Are accidents more
prone during the winter?"
"No ma'am," he replied.
"Why are
summers worse?" she asked.
He looked straight at her, and it was
only then that she realized that most accidents occur because of
over-eager tourists who are too impatient.
After three hours and
a quarter, the local police began trying to free up the smaller road
below us. It was a mess. It was a one-lane job, quite typical of the
roads in Scotland, and hundreds of cars from both directions were trying
to use it to by-pass the accident. This resulted in this road being
"stuck" as well. It took a while for the police to "unstick" it, and
while we waited, I realized that we might very well lose our reservation
at the Bed and Breakfast in Portree. We had no phone connections in the
mountains, and thus, no way to contact the place where we were supposed
to stay. I had read online reviews where tourists who lost their
reservations at this particular Bed and Breakfast for showing up after
six in the evening, and it was well past that time. I decided not to
worry about it, however. After all, the poor man in the crumbled car was
way worse than we were!
Finally the police freed the completely
no-named road (Truly, that road had no name! Quite sad, don't you
think?), and they then escorted hundreds of cars through from the other
end. Only when the last car cleared were we allowed to take our turn on
that 8 kilometers of narrow, dirt road, littered with potholes. We were
just happy to finally be able to move!
Suddenly we had phone
reception. I quickly dialed our Bed and Breakfast, and we were able to
confirm that we were coming. We still had a room for the night!
A
moment after hanging up, our phone reception disappeared...
One
thing I have learned is that adversity will always occur during our
lifetime. Some have more adversity than others. That year we had our
fair share of adversity, and interestingly enough we faced most of it
positively.
Peter and his friends also faced adversity when they
saw someone walking on the lake.
"They were terrified. 'It's a
ghost,' they said, and cried out in fear." (Matt 14:26b, NIV2)
Only when Peter heard Jesus say: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be
afraid." (Matt 14:27b, NIV2) Peter's fear turned into courage. Embolden,
he shout out: "Lord, if it's you . . . Tell me to come to you on the
water." (Matt 14:28, NIV2)
When Jesus invited him to come, he got
out of his boat and started to walk on water. He was truly walking on
the lake! He had overcome his adversity, until . . . "He saw the wind,
he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, 'Lord, save me!'" (Matt
14:30, NIV2)
Did you notice why he was able to walk on water? The
whole time he focused on Jesus, he was able to walk on that water,
without any difficulties. However, the moment his focus was geared on
adversity, he lost it and started to sink.
The same is true with
our trials. The longer we focus on our adversity, our weaknesses, our
addictions, we will fail. The more we focus on Jesus, the more we become
victorious and are able to walk on the adversities of life. After all,
if we let Jesus guide us, we have nothing to fear! He has never failed
us before, why would He start now?
The only way to keep our eyes
above the tumulus waves is by focusing solely on Jesus. He is the One
who will make our faith stronger than ever possible.
"Keep your
eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how
he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed-that
exhilarating finish in and with God-he could put up with anything along
the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of
honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your
faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of
hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your
souls!" (Heb 12:2-3, MSG)
The last few devotionals of this series
have been about our personal adversities when we flew to Great Britain.
The whole time our Father sustained us and kept our eyes above the
waves. Had I known ahead of time, I would have sunk like Peter. Victory
is only possible by focusing solely on the Christ, the One who loves us
more dearly than anyone else! "But thanks be to God! He gives us the
victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 15:57, NIV)
Are you stuck in traffic? What will you do about it?
Rob Chaffart
