Kris and Kell finished breakfast in their hotel the next morning, and they wondered what they were supposed to do. They knew that they were supposed to check out of the hotel and leave that morning, but they did not know where they were supposed to go. They picked up their used paper plates and were going to throw them away when it happened! Kris tripped over his own feet, he fell into Kell and knocked her down, as she was falling, she bumped into a table, and a full pitcher of orange juice began to fall! Kris saw what was happening and he yelled to Kell and told her to get out of the way, but she moved the wrong way and the whole pitcher of orange juice landed on her head! She was a mess!
Just then a man walked up to Kell and said, “You must be Kell. I am from Misadventures….Plus and I have something for you. I was told that I would recognize you because you have a lot of misadventures!”
Kell looked at her clothes and her hair and began to laugh, she said, “Yes, I am Kell, and I certainly did just have a misadventure. Can you tell us where we are supposed to go today?”
The man told them that he had a different rental car for them to use. He would return the rental car that they had been using, and he gave them the keys to the new rental car. Kris and Kell wondered why they needed a different car, the car they had been using was a good car and they had had no problems with it. The man just smiled and said that they would probably like the new rental car. He also told them that they would be driving from South Dakota to Indiana, they were going to the Indy 500 car race!
Kris and Kell were excited! They went upstairs and packed their things, Kell was so excited that she almost forgot to take another shower and change her clothes, but Kris reminded her to do this. When they went outside, they saw their car, and they could not believe their eyes!
They were going to the Indy 500 in style!
They got in the car and away they went! Kris was driving first and he was having a very good time driving this car, it was so fun! Kell was impatient, she wanted a chance to drive this fast and fancy car. Kell begged so much to drive, that Kris pulled to the side of the road and switched places with Kell.
Kell could not believe how much power this car had, she pushed down the accelerator and the car went so fast it seemed like it was flying! Then it happened…suddenly there were flashing lights and a siren coming from behind them! It was a police car! Kell stopped at the side of the road and the police car stopped behind them.
The officer came up to the car window and asked to see Kell’s driver’s license. The officer said, “Do you realize that you were going 35mph faster than the speed limit?” Kell was shocked and scared, she asked, “Are you going to put me in jail?”
The police officer almost smiled and said, “Normally you would be getting a ticket with a big fine or some jail time, but this time it is a little different. All the officers were told to look for you. We were told that you would be driving a bright yellow sports car and would probably be speeding. Your grandmother has already paid the fine, she said to talk to you about how dangerous it is to speed and to warn you not to do it again. If you get caught speeding again, you will get a big fine or maybe even go to jail!”
Kell was so thankful that her grandmother had already paid the price for her big mistake, and Kell drove that car very carefully after that. Kell was afraid that Kris would make fun of her because she got caught speeding, but he did not say anything. In fact, Kris let Kell drive the rest of the way to Indiana, he did not want to take a chance of speeding in that very fast car.
They arrived in Indianapolis, Indiana without any further misadventures, and that Sunday that got to go to the Indy 500 race! There were so many people there watching this race, it was unbelievable! Kris and Kell had reserved seats in front, very close to the track!
At first, they were happy that they had seats so close to the track, but once the race started, they wished that they were further from the track. It was very scary to be so close to cars that were sometimes going over 200mph! Also, the sounds of the racecars were so loud that they could hardly hear each other when they tried to talk!
The race was very exciting, and they did see a few of the cars crash into each other, they saw some motors blow up, and one driver even got in trouble for not following the rules!
Lesson Learned about God
When the race was over Kris and Kell checked into their hotel room for the night. They could not hear very well because of the loud noise of the racecars all day, they smelled like burning rubber and high-octane fuel, and their skin felt gritty with dirt!
Kris said, “I’m getting in the shower right away and get cleaned up!”
Kell answered, “I think we should talk about what we can learn about God from our experiences this week, then we can take showers.”
They talked about how some verses in the Bible compare the life of a Believer to a race.
In the Bible in I Corinthians 9:24-27 it says:
Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.
The people who raced in the Indy 500 spent a lot of time preparing for the race, but not all of them finished, and only one of them won the race. Some had crashes and did not finish the race, some had trouble with their motor and did not finish the race, and one driver did not follow the rules and got disqualified from the race! The rest of the drivers did finish the race, but only the one who finished first got the prize.
In the same way, some people begin to follow God but drop out of the race because of various kinds of trouble or discouragement. Some try to make up their own rules to follow God, and that does not work either.
There is a big difference between the Indy 500 and ‘running the race’ of following God; in the Indy 500 only one driver gets the first-place prize, but many people who follow God faithfully will get the ‘first-place’ prize when they get to heaven! God wants all of us to run our race in this life well, and to finish strong. He will be waiting at the finish line (heaven) with our prize!
Kris and Kell also talked about Kell’s speeding, and how the grandmother had already paid her fine so that she would not have to be punished. Kell learned a lot from this experience; she learned that no one is perfect, and everyone makes mistakes! Some of the mistakes we make in this life are very serious and we all deserve a severe punishment for our many sins! But Jesus has already paid for our sins when he died on the cross and then rose from the dead three days later. We need to believe in Him, talk to Him (pray), and ask that He forgive our sins and come into our life.
God loves to forgive us and wants each of us to run our race well in this life, and He will welcome us into heaven with the words, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” (Matthew 25:21)
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
- Louisianna – 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
- 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
- Georgia – Sin erodes a person’s life and brings death. Galatians 5:19-21, Romans 3:22-25a
- Texas – Jesus offers abundant life. John 10:10, Mark 12:29-31.
- Kansas – Humans are filled with hatred and evil. Genesis 8:21-22, Romans 3:21-25a.
- South Carolina – Reminder of the Crucifixion. Isaiah 53:3-9
- Arkansas – Jesus is Crowned with Glory and Honor. Hebrews 2:9-10, Revelation 19:16, John 11:25-26
- Idaho – Times of Refreshing. Acts 3:19-20a, Matthew 11:28-30, Isaiah 40:28-31
- Washington State – Obeying God is Important! James 1:22-25, James 4:17
- Oregon – Do not let your first love for Jesus erode. Revelation 2:4-5a, Psalms 51:10-12
- Ohio – We are secure in God’s hands. Isaiah 41:13, Psalms 139:9-10, Psalms 73:23-28.
- Iowa – God is in control: Past, Present, & Future. Hebrews 13:8, Revelation 4:8.
- South Dakota – Believers are the family of God. Ephesians 2:19-21, John 1:12-13, Ephesians 1:5, I Thessalonians 5:15-18.
- Indiana – Win the Race! I Corinthians 9:24-27, Matthew 25:21