Chris stopped at a crossing, uncertain which road to take. In a distance, he saw another car approaching and he decided to stop the driver and ask his advice.
As the car came close, he waved him down to a stop. “Pardon me, sir, my name is Chris. You seem to know this area and know exactly where you are heading?”
The man smiled at him, “Hi, my name is Angelo and I was sent to meet you here and tell you where to go. I am a Christian.”
“Oh, that is great, Angelo! I’m a Christian too, or at least I was but I’ve taken so many wrong turns that I believe Jesus has fired me. He must be very disappointed in me by now. I’m afraid I am not part of His kingdom anymore.”
Angelo looked at him intently. “Would you say that God knows everything?”
“Oh yes,” Chris replied.
“This means that on the day you surrendered your life to Jesus, He knew exactly who you were, who you would become and what you would be doing until the day you die.”
“Yes, I believe He did and He still does.”
“And yet, on that day, while He knew exactly how you would lead your life and how it would end eventually, He accepted your conversion and commitment and made you heir of His kingdom. He even gave you directions and tasks to perform. He never told you that you would not make it. He never gave you false hope of reaching heaven. He never told you that you were His child, not meaning it. All of this knowing you would “fail” as you put it!”
“I suppose you are right. I mean, I know you are right”, Chris responded.
“Of course I am. Stop sulking, carry on along the road you would want to travel within His plan and keep on talking, thinking, speaking and doing what you have done. You have been more successful than you think because you have sown seed along the road. Remember though – you are not the one causing it to grow. God does that and only He knows how many seed have sprung up and yielded a crop in your tracks.”
“And, Chris, Jesus did not die for failures. He died for people like you and me who are imperfect travellers, driving through potholes and taking wrong turns more than we would want to admit. Lift your head, fix your eyes on Jesus and keep on driving. He still loves you very much! One word of advice – keep within the speed limit and obey the traffic rules. ”