And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.
And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;
And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
(Gen 19:15-17, 22-26 KJV)
Escape for your life! There are many lessons in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. One that is often over-looked is that Lot and his daughters escaped with their lives. But, his wife did not. They were told not to look back. She did. She looked back toward the home she left behind and was destroyed.
There are times and situations in all of our lives where we end up stuck in muck and mire and it pulls us down whether we always realize it or not. We need to take notice of what is happening in our lives. Even if our intentions are good and good for the people around us as well; there are times we need to walk away, shake the dust off of our feet, and not look back lest we get pulled into the pits of destruction with those who are determined to go that way; lest we get led away from the path which we should be on.
Yes, of course, we should (and must) be willing to go into all places to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus. However, if rather than share the good news we end up sucked into a lifestyle that is turning us away from God we must leave that place; that situation. If you find yourself surrounded by people who refuse to hear, then it is best to leave so that your breath nor your life will be wasted. There is a whole world starving for real hope and for those who know Jesus you have something to offer. You have Jesus to offer. Share him with those who are willing to hear.
We have hope in the kingdom to come; the kingdom that has already broken into this world. That kingdom is our true home. We look forward; not backwards. We look to life in our Father's house. Straying from the path and settling for and accepting a life-style that will bring only destruction is not the way that is good for any of us.
Share the Good News of the Kingdom through Jesus with all people. But, make sure you that the light is shining in you. Be careful that the situations you allow yourself to be in is not dimming or snuffing out the light of Christ in you.
A lesson from Sodom and Gomorrah is that there are times we must walk away and not look back; for our sakes; for the sake of the Gospel; for the sake of those whom we love.
God's Peace - Pr. J
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