When Kris and Kell got up the next morning in the hotel in Huntsville, Alabama, they were ready for another adventure, but they did not know where they were supposed to go next! They went to the front desk of the hotel to check out, and they were given an envelope with their next directions. The directions said that they were to drive to the airport, return their rental car and there were airplane tickets that would take them to Savannah, Georgia!
They got to the airport with no problems and caught their plane. They had to land at another airport and transfer to a different plane to get to Savannah, but they did this with no problems at all! Kell was so excited! She said, “Everything is going great! Maybe this time we will have a great adventure without having a misadventure!”
Their plane landed in Savannah, Georgia right on time and they got their luggage with no problems, and they were ready to go! Suddenly an announcement came over the speakers in the airport; it said, “Will Kris and Kell please report to the airport security office immediately!” Kris was terrified, he said, “What have we done wrong? Why do we need to go to the security office? Do they think we are terrorists?”
Kris and Kell ran to the security office, expecting the worst, but when they got there the woman at the desk smiled and them and handed them an envelope, and told them to enjoy their time in Georgia. The directions in the envelope told them to rent a car and drive to Driftwood Beach.
When they got into their rental car Kell entered Driftwood Beach into her phone and got directions to get there. The beach was a little over 1 ½ hours south of Savannah. As they were driving on the highway, Kell said, “I hope they have a place to change into our swimming suits, I was not planning on going to a beach today! I think I remember where I packed the sunscreen. We will need to use a lot of sunscreen because the sun is very intense by the ocean and it is easy to get burned!”
The app on Kell’s phone took them to a place called Jekyll Island, and Driftwood Beach was on the northern end of the island. When they got to the beach, Kell and Kris could not believe their eyes! This was not a swimming beach! The sandy beach was covered with dead trees! Some of the trees were laying on the ground still in one piece, but many of the trees were broken into piles of branches that were twisted and tangled together. A few of the trees were still standing, but they were all dead! They had been dead for quite a while because their bark was gone, and their wood was bleached white from the weather! Kris and Kell had never imagined anything like this! It was a sad place, but it was also strangely beautiful.
Kris got out his phone and looked up Driftwood Beach on the internet. He found out that this area used to be a forest of oak and pine trees, but erosion of the land over time, combined with storms and an occasional hurricane had killed the trees and caused most of them to fall over. The land had eroded so much that many of the trees are now out in the water at high tide. This area does not generally have waves that are strong enough to carry the fallen trees away, so the dead trees end up staying on the beach and the beach is crowded with dead trees and tree limbs. Many people enjoy coming to this beach and walking among the fallen trees, it is truly a unique place. People also come to the beach to just find peace and quiet while others come to fly kites at this beach. Some people even get married at this beach!
After reading about Driftwood Beach, Kris and Kell were eager to get out of the car and explore this beach. Kell said, “Even though we are not going swimming, we still need to put sunscreen on all our exposed skin, the sun is very strong when it reflects off the ocean!”
After applying sunscreen generously to their skin, Kris and Kell began exploring Driftwood Beach. It was very peaceful and relaxing. They walked around a large pile of dead tree limbs and tree trunks and discovered a wedding that was taking place. Kell whispered to Kris, “We already interrupted a wedding in New Orleans when we were there, we need to be very careful not to do anything that will interrupt this wedding! This is such a beautiful place to get married, and we should not spoil it for them.” Kris and Kell quietly walked away, they did not trip over any driftwood, and they did not sneeze or make any other noise. Kris and Kell were so proud of themselves; they got away from that wedding without having a misadventure.
A little further down the beach there was a group of children flying kites! The breeze was gusty, so the kites were swooping and diving towards the ground, but the kids were very good at controlling the kites and kept them from crashing! Kris said, “Now we must be extra careful, I do not want to get tangled up in one of the kite strings! That would ruin the day for these kids, and it would be another misadventure! Kris and Kell carefully got out of that part of the beach without having a misadventure. This day was going perfectly; it was almost too good to be true!
The warm sunshine was very relaxing, and Kris and Kell found a dead tree that was still standing, and they sat down in the shade of the tree trunk so that they could just enjoy the day. They were listening to the sounds of the ocean, the sounds of the sea gulls, and watching some fluffy white clouds float across the sky. They were so relaxed that they both fell into a gentle and peaceful sleep.
Kell suddenly woke up because something bumped into her! It was a piece of driftwood that was floating in the water! Suddenly Kell realized that she was very wet! In fact, she was in a pool of water, the tide had come in while they were sleeping! Kris was also in water, but he was still fast asleep. Kell woke him up and he jumped to his feet! Unfortunately, he hit his head on a limb of the dead tree! Kris and Kell started heading for higher ground above the tide! There was a problem; between the dead tree and the higher ground there was a low place. The water was already almost two feet deep in the low place and they had to cross that area to get to the higher ground. They started to wade across that low place, and right in the middle of it Kell’s sandal came off! She reached down to pick up her sandal and lost her balance and began to fall! Kris tried to catch her, but he lost his balance too! They both fell face-first into the water. They sat up and looked at each other, and they were both a mess! Kell said, “Misadventure strikes again!” Then they both began to laugh!
Eventually they got back to their rental car and found an envelope under the windshield wiper. The directions said to go directly back to the airport, and there were tickets for another plane ride. They did not even have a chance to change clothes or get cleaned up! They were going to have to fly on a plane with their hair messed up, covered with sand, and smelling like the ocean!
The trees on Driftwood Beach died because of erosion. The water and the weather gradually washed the sandy soil away from the trees. The trees grew weaker, died and fell over. It was a gradual process; it did not happen quickly. Over time, the oak and pine trees died. They still had some beauty, but they were dead!
Sin does the same thing in a person’s life. Sin erodes our life away and ultimately brings death.
In the Bible in Galatian 5:19-21 it says:
When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Each of us have a sinful nature, and sin wants to erode our life away and bring eternal death, separated from God for all eternity and enduring punishment for all eternity! On our own, it is hopeless, we cannot overcome our sin nature without help! The good news is that God provides the help to be forgiven and to break free from being under control of the sin nature!
In the Bible in Romans 3:22-25a it says:
We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood.
Stop the erosion of sin in your life! Believe in Jesus today and accept Him into your life. He will forgive you!
Report to the grandmother:
- At the travel agency – God has a good plan for us. Jeremiah 29:11
- Florida – God is watching over us, we do not need to be fearful. Psalms 23
- Wisconsin – Temptations. I Corinthians 10:13, Proverbs 14:12, I John 1:9
- Minnesota – Never take your eyes off Jesus. Matthew 14:22-33
- Kentucky – God’s Word (the Bible) is the truth! John 17:17
- Louisiana – Choose Heaven and the Tree of Life. Revelation 20:11-15, Revelation 21:27 thru 22:5
- Illinois – God is in control. Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28-30, Proverbs 16:9
- New Mexico – God is our place of safety. Psalms 46:1-3, Psalms 91:1-2, Psalms 18:1-2, John 14:1-3
9. Alabama – Training for heaven. I Peter 1:18-21, I John 3:2-3, Ephesians 5:1-2, I Peter 2:21, II Timothy 4:6-8
10. Georgia – Sin erodes a person’s life and brings death. Galatians 5:19-21, Romans 3:22-25a