By Jack Wyman

They were out to have a good time. It was a day trip with family and friends.

A chance to create some memories.

Three young people from California—all in their twenties—were hiking in Yosemite National Park. They climbed up the steep and slippery Mist Trail until they reached Vernal Fall. It is one of Yosemite’s most popular and spectacular waterfalls.

It was a crystal clear, beautiful day.

There was a metal guardrail. It had been placed there by park authorities to keep visitors away from the swift-moving water of the Merced River. Just 25 feet from the precipice of the fall, the young people crossed over the guardrail and entered the water.

Other hikers who were there kept telling them, “It’s not safe!” They paid no attention.

There had been a near-record Sierra snowpack the previous winter and a cool rainy spring. The Merced River was raging. When one of the hikers slipped, another reached for her. When he went into the water, the third hiker tried to grab him and then he too slipped into the river.

Caught in the current, the three hikers were swept to their deaths 317 feet below.

A single sign warns hikers not to cross the guardrail or to swim in the pools near the fall. They ignored the sign. They ignored other hikers attempting to warn them of the danger. Vernal Fall is beautiful. To get in the waters of the Merced River is a temptation. It is also very perilous.

A single sign. But an important one.

Kurt Repanshek, editor of the website National Parks Traveler, commented after the tragedy: 

“While there are railings and signs in some of the more dangerous spots, those often are ignored by more than a few visitors, to their detriment.”

Ignoring the signs. It can be a hazardous thing to do. The psalmist writes about those who insist on ignoring God and going their own way, morally and spiritually:

“Truly, you put them on a slippery path and send them sliding over the cliff to destruction. In an instant they are destroyed, completely swept away by terrors.” (Psalm 73: 18-19).

It may be a broad and popular highway the world travels but Jesus says that it leads not to life and safety, but to destruction (Matthew 7:13). “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death” (Proverbs 16:25).

It seems right. But it’s not.

How easily a person may be deceived. How often one’s perspective may be clouded; how subtly one’s will may be influenced and his thinking shaped by the prevailing mood. One of the devil’s most beguiling strategies is to convince us that we dare not be on the unpopular side.

Others climb over the guardrail—why can’t we? Why shouldn’t we? These guardrails have been here forever. They’re old and worn. Why must they deprive us of the thrill and excitement of the rushing river?

Right is lonely these days. Besides, who’s to say what is right? Anymore? These guardrails were placed here long ago by those who feared change. Listen to the world! It’s mocking us, laughing at us, hating us. We’re so irrelevant and out of touch. Away with these guardrails of faith and virtue! They hold us back from the fun of the mighty current.

The Apostle Paul warns us: “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall.” (I Corinthians 10:12). Sin doesn’t hit us over the head; it lures us gently with the appeal of rationalities and justifications. They’re a very subtle thing, Satan’s mind games. Bitter for sweet; darkness for light. The guardrails are uprooted just one at a time—until we find ourselves headed for the falls.

As a church. As a nation. As individuals.

The Bible warns us. Its signs and guardrails are there for our health and safety, and our true happiness 

The founders of this great republic also knew better than to ignore the signs of human nature’s fallen condition. They trusted and respected the guardrails of religion and morality. By creating the separation of powers, and checks and balances, they gave us a lasting constitutional framework that has stood the test of crisis and ambition for nearly 250 years.

In a world filled with danger and temptation, God has promised his people guidance and protection. That guidance and protection are premised on our allegiance to his standards and our obedience to his commands. The narrow road of Christian faith may sometimes be difficult and lonely to travel but it gives us safe passage to a happy end.

 We must read and follow the signs.

God has given us His word as a lamp to guide our feet and a light for our path (Psalm 119:105). We must read it, study it, know it and follow it. We must heed its warnings, live by its precepts and claim its promises.

Eternal truth pulsates from its pages.

What will God do? He will keep us safe. Jude tells us that God is “able to keep you from falling.” (Jude vs. 24)

In her beautiful prayer of praise, Hannah rejoices that God “will guard the feet of His saints.” (I Samuel 2:9). God will catch us; He’ll support us, strengthen us and encourage us. Even through the fires of affliction and the chilly waters of heartbreak, God goes with us and delivers us.

Then will the psalmist’s testimony be our own: “I cried out ‘I am slipping’, but your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me. When doubts filled my mind, Your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.” (Psalm 94: 18-19).

If you and I will remain inside the guardrail of God’s word—if we will obey His commands and live by His standards—if we will read and respect His signs of warning—then God will keep us safely in the embrace of His love, grace and protection.

Anything less would be precarious.

To order Jack Wyman’s book, “Everything Else: Stories of LIfe, Faith and Our World”, go to amazon.com, Christian Book Distributors or barnesandnoble.com. It is also available on Kindle and eBooks.

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