There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

— Proverbs 14:12

There are way too many human train wrecks at the intersection of stupidity and opportunity.

I’ve crawled away from many of them myself: BB gun wars where I just about got my eye shot out; arguing while driving, nearly ending the lives of my family and others in a two-car, narrow highway crash; countless negative words, moral lapses and impulsive financial decisions.

I’m pretty sure you’re familiar with the list.

The author of the book of Proverbs, King Solomon, was too.

He was a strong starter but later in life veered off track in directions he knew full well were no-go zones.

His failures set up the splintering of his kingdom and the slippery slide into national moral decay.

He was described as the wisest man who ever lived.

Still, he fell victim to the foolishness he so eloquently and accurately described years earlier.

Our world is inundated with “seems right” living.

We can easily be pulled along in its current.

However, the river will eventually go over the waterfall; just ask Solomon.

God’s word invites us into a much different reality.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

A different course. A different destination.

Perhaps it’s time to take our foot off the accelerator, tap the brakes, turn and change course.

Wiles is senior minister of Fall Creek Christian Church in Pendleton. He can be reached at 765-778-3166.