One of the highlights of our recent vacation to the Pacific Northwest area was driving from Seattle to Whidbey Island. We could have taken the ferry but we heard that we would enjoy the scenery more by actually driving on to the island via the Deception Pass Bridge.
The bridge gets its name from the 18th century explorer, George Vancouver who was misled into thinking that Whidbey Island was a peninsula. It was quite a view to drive on this bridge while overlooking the water and the beautiful scenery.
George Vancouver certainly isn't the only person to have been deceived. All of us can think of times that we have been fooled. Sometimes, we deceive ourselves! In our walk with Christ, we sometimes deceive ourselves by not seeing the areas of our lives which are broken and in need of God's healing love. We deceive ourselves when we think that we can face sin and evil without the power and help of God's grace.
Thankfully, God is always extending grace and mercy to us to help us navigate through life. We don't have to pretend to be somebody we're not. We don't have to be victims of temptation because God has promised to empower us in any given situation.
Some of the ways to help us not be deceived is to receive God's grace by practicing the means of grace such as weekly worship, a daily devotional life of scripture and prayer, and participation in a weekly small group experience. By utilizing these means of grace, we are less likely to fall into temptation and be deceived about who we are and to whom we belong. We are sons and daughters of God who have been redeemed through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the bridge that leads us from all deceptions and empowers us to be the people we were created to be.
"Do not be deceived, my beloved." - James 1:16
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I like the comparison of the Deception Pass Bridge with Jesus being the bridge that leads us all from deceptions and empowers us to be the people we were created to be. It is also a beautiful picture.
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