We are all familiar with Charles Lindbergh, who made the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean on May 20, 1927. In his little plane, the Spirit of St. Louis, he made the history-making flight in 33 hours, 30 minutes. You may not be as familiar with a tousle-headed young man by the name of Corrigan who loaded up a small plane with gasoline and took off from New York for San Francisco, only he landed in Ireland. When asked how he could possibly have made such a huge mistake in navigation, he replied that evidently he went the wrong way. Thereafter he became famous as 'Wrong-way Corrigan.' Everyone suspected that it wasn't a mistake after all, that he intended to fly east all along, and was just being sneaky.
Corrigan's wrong way turned out good, but not so with Roy Riegels. In 1929 the University of California, Berkeley, was playing the football team from Georgia Tech in the Rose Bowl. Toward the end of the game, Roy recovered a fumble by a Georgia Tech player and ran 65 yards, in the wrong direction. One of his own teammates tackled him before he reached the goal line. The Georgia Tech team took possession on the next play and scored the winning touchdown. Ever after that day Riegels had to live with the nickname 'Wrong-way Riegels.'
Is it possible that we as Christians could go the wrong way? The answer is yes; the Bible states in Proverbs that it might seem like the right way, but it could have serious consequences and could even end in death. The problem is that as sinful human beings we often allow ourselves to be guided by our natural inclinations; selfishness, greed, appetite, lust for power or influence often cloud our spiritual vision and cause us to head in the wrong direction. Sometimes the fork in the road may be almost imperceptible, but then we soon find out we took the wrong fork, and it is difficult to get back on track. Sometimes we can make a short cut to the right way, but usually it means retracing our steps to the place where we made the wrong decision. I am reminded of the poem by Robert Frost entitled, 'The Road Not Travelled.'
"Two roads diverged in a wood and I- I took the one less travelled by, and that has made all the difference."
This poem portrays a fork in the road of life, and how the decision we make determines the direction and destiny of our path.
Yes, sometimes there is a way that seems right, but it may lead to disaster and even eternal death. So, let us carefully consider our ways under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and Bible counsel that we not end up as 'wrong-way Christians.'
