“Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5:23-24)

In the aftermath of a snowstorm, it is not uncommon to see a sight such as this vehicle which was photographed in Jersey City, U.S.A.

Interestingly enough, in many jurisdictions, including New Jersey, a motorist can be fined for driving with snow on the roof. With good reason.

There are two primary ways in which this unremoved snow could spell disaster.

In the first place, it could slide down and block the vision of the driver, either in the front windshield or the rear.

Thus, you cannot see what is ahead of you or behind you.

Should this lack of vision result in an accident, you can seriously hurt yourself and those who are with you in the vehicle.

In the second place, this poses a danger to others who are on the road.

Unremoved snow could fly off your roof and hit another vehicle and impair the ability of that driver to see what is ahead/behind.

Of course, should your vehicle collide with another because of your inability to see, you could hurt those who are in that vehicle as well.

There are times when the result is multiple collisions, a chain reaction that can literally affect tens if not hundreds of motorists.

One driver’s refusal to wipe off the snow from their car roof can potentially wipe out the lives of others.

In St. Catharines, Ontario, we just dug ourselves out of a severe snowstorm that dumped nearly a foot and a half (44 cm) of the white stuff.

Needless to say we literally spent hours removing the snow off our driveways and sidewalks.

A reasonable estimate of the time it would take to wipe off the accumulated snow from a car roof would be somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes.

Yet, many motorists, who had just spent hours removing the rest of the snow on their properties, could not take the extra few minutes to extend that courtesy to their cars.

Not even the threat of a fine is deterrent enough…obviously 🙁

The prospect of serious damage to self and others should be a serious motivating factor, you would think. Sadly, not to everyone 🙁

Over the past 30 years in ministry, I have witnessed the disastrous results of those who refused to take the time to do something similar in their lives.

Here are the two most common scenarios.

Couples facing problems in their marriage who would not take a year or two to work things out so they could enjoy another 20-40 years of fulfilled lives. Instead many opted for acrimonious divorces that left their mark on them and their children for years to come.

Ministry colleagues who would not take the time to receive ministry to get their hearts healed up because that would interrupt their busy schedules. Sadly some of them were burnt out. Others fell from grace, wiping out churches and ministries in the process.

In both cases, not only did they hurt themselves, but their refusal to “remove the snow from the roof” also caused damage to their immediate families, and in some cases, an entire community, even the Body of Christ as a whole.

In the grand scheme of things, the time it would have taken to receive counselling or prayer ministry would have been as minuscule as the time it would have taken a driver to remove the snow from the roof of the car.

No wonder Jesus insisted that we take the time to be reconciled first, before bringing our offerings to the altar.

He wants us to remove the snow of accumulated sins, wrongs and regrets first before we start motoring down life’s highway.

If the Holy Spirit is convicting you of the need to do this as you read these words, would you please obey Him right away?

I hope so. I pray so.

No need to endanger your life and those of others unnecessarily…amen?