DERAILED

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6)

Several years ago, in a Little Golden Book classic, the story of Tootle, the baby locomotive is told. As it was being trained to be the Flyer on the New York – Chicago route, it was instructed to always stay on the rails. One day, Tootle was challenged by a horse to a race. While going around a curve, Tootle was derailed in seeking to get even with the horse’s lead. Long story short, Tootle got back on track, having learned to stay on the tracks with the help of Bill, his good friend and teacher.

We live in a broken society filled with those who have strayed from the moral, God-given “tracks!” Perhaps they were brought up in homes where the Bible was read and honored, but then they “graduated” to the schools of “higher” learning (when and where they became relativists). Perhaps they thought that the beliefs of their parents were antiquated. Or it could be that they were induced to “find themselves” in other religions. Others, perhaps, became disillusioned with the God of the Bible and turned away from Him, claiming that He had disappointed their expectations. Of course, it would never be their fault, right? And then there are many others who considered the “rails” of biblical truth to be too restrictive. They wanted to be loosed from the tracks that allowed them the freedom to please God, who, in turn, would help them to run their lives smoothly. And, for a number of other reasons, mankind derailed.

Think of it, a train derailed has lost its use and function. A train derailed can cause serious injury to others as well. A train derailed will likely end up in a junkyard to rust. But it can also be recycled or renewed.

My dear friend: it could be that somewhere, sometime ago, somehow you got off the right track. There is One who is calling you to repentance and a useful life full of fulfillment, meaning and usefulness. Augustine said it so well when he wrote, “For You made us for Yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in You!” (The Confessions, Book I).