The group had left the open, peaceful, desert behind them and the Ugly Little Blue Bus was making its way through the city of Los Angeles!
Traffic was zooming all around them, and the bus could not go fast enough to keep up with that traffic, but they kept chugging along and the group was excited because the Pacific Ocean was near! When they finally came to the ocean, they saw a sight that they were not expecting! In front of them were two huge piers stretching out over the ocean!
The sign at the entrance said that it was Santa Monica Pier!
The kids could not believe their eyes, on the pier there was a huge Ferris Wheel,
a Roller Coaster,
an old Merry-Go-Round with hand carved horses,
and many other fun things! Before they did anything else, the Leader said that they had to take a group picture! He led the way onto the pier, and then they saw it! It was a Route 66 sign that said, ‘End of the Trail’.
They had reached the end of Route 66; their journey was done!
After the group pictures and many selfies, they spent the day exploring Santa Monica Pier, riding on the rides, and hanging out on the beach beside the pier.
It was a wonderful day, and a great way to celebrate the end of their journey! All too soon it was time to head for the campground, but they had to wait for the Leader, he was talking to a stranger! This stranger was a thin man with a dark tan, he was obviously from California and looked like he spent most of his time by the ocean! They wondered who he was, and why their Leader was spending so much time talking to this stranger.
That night around the campfire the Leader talked to the group about the journey they had taken.
It seemed a long time ago that they took pictures at the beginning of Route 66 in Chicago! They had come a long way and had seen many things and learned many things! It had not all been easy! There had been days when they had had troubles and wanted to quit and go home, and there had been times when they had been tired and discouraged, but they had not quit, they had kept going. Now they had reached the end of Route 66 and they had just had a great day of celebration!
The journey along Route 66 can be compared to the Christian life! The Christian life can be very hard, there are times when it would be so easy to quit and live another way, but when we reach the end of this life and see Jesus face-to-face it will be worth everything that we have gone through in this life, and there will be the greatest celebration that ever was!
In the Bible in II Timothy 4:7-8, the Apostle Paul is anticipating that his life is nearly over, and he says:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me – the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of His return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to His appearing.
The Christian life is all about following Jesus, each day, and every day! When life is not easy, just trust Jesus and keep following Him. At the end of this life when we stand before Jesus, he will give the crown of righteousness to those who have followed Him. Righteousness means that in God’s eyes, we measure up to His standards of holiness, not because of our goodness but because of Jesus paying for our sins on the cross. We cannot come close to living a perfect life, but Jesus has already done that for us! When we get to heaven there will be a great celebration that will last for eternity! Keep following Jesus on the journey that He has put in your life, it will be worth it!
There was sadness when the time around the campfire ended, the kids loved those times around the campfire, but the Leader told them that they would have one more campfire time the next morning after breakfast. The Leader said that he would tell them about the plans for going home and introduce them to a new friend that he had met that day! The kids could hardly wait for morning!
