The Pastor’s Piece – Pastor Kevin Cernek, FCFI Chaplain

FCFI
November 30, 2025

One of my all time favorite trips I’ve taken was during Covid when I drove from Wisconsin to Florida and back again. The nation was under lockdown and most people were simply not going anywhere – except for me. I’ve driven to Florida and back a few times in my life and I’ve found that the city of Atlanta, Georgia is one of the worst for traffic jams. Until this trip, no matter what time of the day or night I went through that town, there were always traffic delays. Eight lanes of traffic moving in one direction, 16 total in both, isn’t enough to clear the congestion. However, on this particular trip, I was able to motor right through the city without so much as slowing down. It probably will never happen again, but that’s how memories are made.

There are a couple of intersections around this part of the country that converge from four different directions, but only stop from three. There’s always a sign that tells you the traffic from a certain direction does not stop. My first question is: Why do they not make everyone stop from every direction? My second question is: Do they realize how many accidents there are in those intersections? Usually those in authority know the danger involved and they know the high amount of traffic accidents, but I’m assuming there must be governmental red-tape involved to get the extra stop sign added.

I got stuck in one of those intersections one time. I should have been paying closer attention, but I wasn’t. I pulled up to the stop sign and saw that there were no other cars waiting in the intersection, however there was one approaching. Thinking they had to stop, I went ahead and started moving forward. All of a sudden the lady in the on-coming car made a sharp left turn and I was right in her path. I slammed on my brakes, she slammed on hers and we came to a stop within a couple of inches of hitting each other, but we didn’t. But it triggered her in a most unattractive way. She slammed her car in park and before I could move, she jumped out and started in my direction, cursing at me as she came. She wanted to know what was wrong with me and if I was trying to hurt her children. I wasn’t. She also wanted to know if I had a brain. I do. These were questions I did not feel obligated to answer. As she approached my vehicle, she was gesturing inappropriately the whole way. As quick as I could think, I stuck my car in reverse and backed up out of her way and out of the intersection. I put it back in drive, took a sharp left turn in the on-coming lane (which had no traffic in it) and ducked around the back side of her car and continued down the street. No harm had been done and I considered it expedient not to elevate the situation with an argument.

In one sense I felt bad about my mistake. In another sense, I was relieved no one got hurt. And yet in another sense, I felt bad for her. Sure, she was surprised by my bone-headed move. I was guilty of that. But I wasn’t guilty of not having a brain or intentionally trying to cause her and her children bodily harm. I felt bad because of her lack of patience and intolerance to an honest mistake, the results of which would forever never happen again between our two vehicles at that intersection. I had learned my lesson to pay attention to details and hopefully she had learned hers – pay attention to the other driver. My uncle used to warn us about traffic safety and he would always say, “Remember, you can be dead right. Watch for the other drivers and drive defensively.”

I came across an almost-accident another time, this time involving two vehicles unrelated to mine. The driver ahead of us was looking for a particular street and when he found it, he was so excited he turned left without yielding. Traffic was moving along at about 50 mph on this particular road. When the driver turned left, he turned right in front of a full-sized Ford Bronco. The Bronco locked his brakes and did a full slow-motion donut right in the middle of the road. Tires were squealing and smoke filled the air. It was amazing he didn’t roll it. Before the Bronco driver could even get out of his car, the driver of the car at fault stopped on the edge of the intersection, got out and went over and apologized to him. Granted, he wasn’t happy, but he received the apology with grace and everyone went down the road calm and collected, though a little shaken, and no children heard any cursing.

Life is full of intersections where people fail, misjudge, or move too fast. At those moments, I hope we choose grace over grievance because grace is the only thing that keeps us from colliding with each other. And grace is what saves us.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast,” (Ephesians 2:8-).

(Kevin Cernek is Lead Pastor of Martintown Community Church in Martintown, Wisconsin)