He Knows the Way Out

A guy is walking down the street and falls into a hole. The walls are too steep to climb out. He sees a doctor walk by and yells, “Hey can you help me?” The doctor throws down a prescription and walks away. A priest strolls by and the guy yells, “Please, help me!” The priest nods, writes a prayer, throws it into the hole, and walks off. Finally, a friend walks by so the guy calls out, “Hey, I’m down here. Help me!” The friend jumps down into the hole. Our guy says, “What, are you crazy? Now we’re both down here.” The friend says, “Yeah, but I’ve been down here before and I know the way out.”

I don’t care who you are — an accountant, assembly worker, NBA star, or the Pope himself — you will find yourself walking through the valley of the shadow of death sooner or later. You do not have to fear because God is in the valley with you. He’s been there before and He knows the way out.

The Israelites turned a two-week voyage into a 40-year wandering because they didn’t follow God out. Learn from their mistakes. God can and will help you. He will send someone, a dream, a vision, even a messenger pigeon if He must. He is the ultimate comforter.

Don’t get me wrong, being a Christian won’t always be comfortable. However, you will always have God’s rod and staff to guide you because He knows the way out.

Heavenly Father, thank you for leading and guiding me every step of the way. Thank you for your patience when I do not follow your directions. Please keep me on the straight and narrow path. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Go Deeper — Think of one person you know who is in the valley right now. Contemplate ways that God can use you to “jump down to where they are” and use His love to show them the way out.