Twelve feet

The wind blew cold and brisk as it came down the road. Night had settled in and was at that point of darkness just before the stars begin to really shine. I could hear the traffic driving by as I was working. I was in the construction zone on I-20. I have grown accustom to the constant noise of traffic driving by, this is my office, I’m a construction worker.

I walked towards my service truck to get a set of plans as I do so many times a day, when something caught the attention of my ears; I stopped just inches outside of the live lane of traffic as a Suburban came through. For a moment I stood still, almost frozen, then the adrenaline kicked in and I backed up. I realized I was just inches from what surely would have been my end. Even with all my years, I almost broke the cardinal rule, look before you cross the road.

This put me to thinking… twelve feet. Twelve feet is the width of a driving lane between the lines on the road. Twelve feet is the difference between safety and tragedy. No Christmas with the kids, no playing ball in the yard, no steaks on the grill, no butterfly kisses, no story time. Twelve feet is the difference between being warm inside the house, and freezing outside homeless. Twelve feet is the difference between being on land in Florida and safe from Castro, or caught by immigration still in the ocean and sent back to Cuba. Twelve feet is the difference between inside the gas chambers of Nazi Germany, or separating the clothes and shoes outside of it. Twelve feet… I never had given such a short distance any thought. A car driving 55 mph travels 80 ft a second, twelve feet only takes .15 seconds. It’s the distance for me between life and death.

As Christ hung on the cross he looked down at the soldiers and said “Forgive them, they have no idea what they are doing.” Later he looked up to God at the moment before he died and said “It is finished!” Twelve feet is the difference between dying for all of humanity and just watching. Twelve feet is the distance between the front row of pews and a place to pray at the alter. It’s been said “you don’t have to go to church to go to heaven.” And that is true, but I wouldn’t let twelve feet stand in my way either. Twelve feet for me was the difference in making it to safety, or loosing it all. I hope my words have caught the attention of your ears just as God caught the attention of mine, just before I walked into traffic. God loves you and has a present for you this Christmas. And it’s a good one.

Remember Look up, Live Life, and Be Thankful

Kevin