We were in Indiana and sitting at a traffic light of a busy intersection when, suddenly, we heard blaring sirens as an oncoming stream of police cars turned down the road directly in front of us. As we watched in amazement, we counted sixteen different police cars speed out of sight in hot pursuit. This was in the middle of town, so there were many people trying to figure what was going on and what to do. The sirens started getting closer again, until we saw the line of police cars coming towards us.

Finally, we saw who the culprit was. Directly in front of us, a car screeched around the corner, turning down the same the road we were on. Both of the left tires were flat and smoking. We had seen a police with a stop stick and could tell that they had been successful in blowing out his tires. The desperate man in the driver’s seat continued his futile attempt to elude all the police cars behind him, but, by this time, he wasn’t able to drive very fast. It looked ridiculous to us as he still seemed determined to drive away from them. Did he really think he was going to escape without having to face the consequences of his choices and decisions? We wondered how it was all going to end, but decided not to get any closer to the action. It was scary to think of who may suffer the consequences of his actions. It wasn’t until about a week later that we found out how it ended…

Have you ever seen someone make a ridiculous decision—seeming oblivious to what was obvious? They pursued their own agenda rather than heeding the rules or counsel of others. It was obvious to others that they were making an unwise decision, but they were determined to pursue their course. They never seemed to recognize the reality of their situation. Even while they were in the midst of despair, they were determined to avoid the result of their choices.

Like the desperate man, sometimes our first response is to run away from the consequences of wrong choices rather than taking responsibility for them. It is always better to examine our decisions and learn from them rather than running away, and face the repercussions. The Bible also clearly communicates that, “…In the midst of counsel, there is safety.” (Proverbs 11:14)

There are numerous choices that each of us face every day. Many of them may seem insignificant, but added up together, they become significant. Some of these decisions include: how we spend our money, who we are spending time with, whether we are choosing God’s way or our own, if we’re going to be enslaved by addictions, and whether we are going to encourage or discourage others. There are many big and life altering outcomes that are the result of our “small” choices. However, many of us are unaware of the damage we are creating to those around us by our blind, selfish, and ungodly decisions.

The desperate and reckless driver that we saw in the police chase finally came to a “dead end” and faced the harsh reality of his situation. He crashed into another car and then attempted to run away on foot. Several times, while he was driving and also after he got out of his car, he was pointing a gun to his head. Thankfully, the police were able to talk him into giving up his gun, and God spared his life. My prayer is that God will give him another chance and that his prison experience will be life changing for him and he will learn from his wrong choices.

May God help each of us to see the way our choices are affecting those closest to us. I pray that we will clearly see how our influences have an impact on those around us. If we choose to blame God or others instead of taking personal responsibility, we may say or do things that we will forever regret. The man with a gun held to his head had probably made numerous wrong decisions and was now attempting to run from them. Don’t allow yourself to get to this point! Instead of being oblivious to the obvious, may God bless you with a keen sense of His direction and enable you to choose His ways.

The harsh or demeaning words we say can never be taken back, the actions we do will never be undone, and the hurts we cause will always leave a wound. I long to be more of who God created me to be and learn rather than run when I make wrong choices.

~Cindy (For The Mullett Family)