A PARABLE OF TWO OUTCOMES

                 Two new pickup trucks rolled off the line and were shipped to awaiting dealers. They gleamed with all of the shine of a new vehicle as they sat on the showroom floor. Then one day each of the trucks was purchased by an excited buyer.

                Each man examined the shining truck on the showroom floor. Each was impressed by the features it had to offer. Each made the decision to purchase, and signed their name on the dotted line. Each drove their new truck home with an overwhelming sense of joy and satisfaction.

                Over the first few months, each man took intentional care of their shiny new truck. They were careful about placing things in its bed. They watched out for potholes in the road. They parked in places where they felt they were safe from dents and scratches. But as the months began to turn into years, things gradually changed.

                One of the men continued to conscientiously care for his truck. He had the undercarriage rust coated. He had a bed liner installed to protect the truck’s bed. He washed his truck once a week. He kept the interior clean. He changed the oil regularly. He rotated the tires on a regular basis. He had the engine tuned up periodically. If he noticed a dent or a scratch on the truck, he dealt with is right away.

                The other man began to take his truck for granted. He turned down the offer of rust coating as an extra expense. After he had gotten a couple of dents in the truck bed, he didn’t think about it anymore. After all, that’s to be expected when you use a pickup truck. He had the oil changed only occasionally. He rarely washed it. He allowed old coffee cups, paper napkins, and miscellaneous stuff to accumulate in the interior. He wasn’t careful when getting in and out of the truck, so soon there were a few tears in the seats and scuffs on the doors and dashboard. Because he rarely washed his truck, he did not notice the dents and scratches that began to appear. Soon there were small patches of rust forming on the body of the truck. He didn’t pay attention to the tires unless he got a flat. He never had the engine tuned up.

                Many years later people marveled at the first man’s pickup. It was in great shape and had actually increased in value. Almost every week, someone asked the owner if he wanted to sell his “vintage” pickup. The owner would just smile and answer, “not today.” The other man’s pickup sat in a junk yard, piled on top of three other vehicles. The tires had been stripped off and rust had eaten away the body. Whatever was still useful from the engine had long ago been salvaged.

                The Bible tells us that we are like these two pickup trucks. Each choice we make in life, each action we take, is moving us in one of two directions. We are either becoming more and more like what God created us to be or we are becoming less and less like it.

                God created us in His image; to live in relationship with Him. We each begin our life on this earth with that as the end goal. As we grow and mature, we set the course of our life by the decisions that we make. We can decide to ignore God’s design and live however we please. In the end that path leads to the spiritual junk yard. Or we can choose to follow God’s design for our lives. We can intentionally do the things that make us more Christlike. The Bible says that the outcome of that choice is eternal life.  

                Every choice we make is leading us in one of these two directions. Where do you want to be when your life’s journey comes to and end?

Galatians 6:7-8

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.