We’re taking showers again at our house. After losing repeatedly in a war against the elements (i.e. roots and soil in our basement pipes), we finally saw victory. Two drain-clearing experts arrived with their mega-machinery and extensive know-how, and now our floor drain flows freely.

Amazingly, the whole thing was probably my fault.

It turns out that when this house was built in 1938, the city sewer system didn’t exist. Most houses had septic systems. In the 1970’s, sewers arrived, but many homes (ours included) left basement drains emptying into the ground. That worked well until the year 2000… when we arrived.

While doing yard clean-up one day, I noticed a mini-gulley in the back yard beneath the ivy. Each time I raked, swept, or collected debris, I’d throw it into that long, narrow depression in an effort to level off the ground. Unbeknownst to me, that little ditch was the exit route for our basement shower.

By the time the plumbers figured it out last week, they’d dug through four feet of dirt, leaves, and twigs covering the hole where water had always flowed freely. I’d unwittingly made my own compost pile over the opening, facilitating rapid growth of surrounding roots. As the roots searched for water, they moved directly up the pipe, bringing their soil base along with them. Pretty clever on their part. Absolute idiocy on mine.

This saga is a first-rate example of what a tangled mess can result from making decisions based on wrong information. If I’d have taken one minute to look for a reason why that little ditch was there, I might have seen the edge of the pipe. The plumber actually found a rim of bricks in a semi-circle around the opening, which surely would have tipped me off to the reason for the gulley.

Rushing ahead without thinking (like me) isn’t a sensible way to bounce through life, since it leaves the results open to chance. Scripture speaks to that kind of slapdash approach in a disapproving way: “The wise are cautious and avoid danger; fools plunge ahead with reckless confidence.” (Proverbs 14:16)

Thankfully, this time it was only a plumbing problem. There is one category of life, though, where reckless confidence can lead to permanent catastrophe: our relationship to God. Where do we stand with him? Are we confident we’ll be with him after we die? Or are we recklessly leaving it to chance? These are questions we all need to answer for ourselves.

My plumbing problem was a mystery for a long time, but our whereabouts after we die need never be a mystery. If we put our trust and confidence in God according to his Word, we’ll end up in his presence, exactly as he promised.

And I’m sure there’ll be no plumbing problems there.

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise… Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” (Ephesians 5:15,17)