Beginning a career as a Jail Guard opened my eyes to a whole new world of scary people. Larry was one of them. One day, when I entered his cell, Larry stood with a large metal pipe in his hand. He had pulled a piece of plumbing out of the wall. Now he had a weapon. Larry threatened to “start busting heads.” Then, he pointed the pipe at me and said, “And, I’m gonna start with you!”

I backed out of the cell and radioed the front desk. The cavalry started coming, and I knew what was about to occur. Tasers hadn’t been invented yet, and pepper spray was still a long way in the future. If Larry didn’t drop that pipe before the desk officers arrived, the resulting mayhem would be significant. He didn’t, and it was…

Larry’s threat toward me was legit. He wasn’t a nice man. He wavered between damaged and demonic. When his temper flared, no one could reason with him or control him. When he fought, he felt no pain. Charged with murder, Larry had made a list of those he intended to kill, and then acted on that list. Thankfully, he was arrested after murder number one. Larry shot the man who snitched on him. Larry never made it to the second victim on his list. Number two was my boss, the Jail Commander.

Larry suffered from delusions of grandeur. He idolized a savage African warlord he’d seen in a movie. For some reason, this brutal killer captivated Larry’s broken mind. He sought to emulate the violence, thinking killing would make him great. Instead, it destroyed his life and the lives of the victims of his violence. If Larry ever realized his deception, it was now too late. Over three decades in prison, he has no chance of release.

Imagine if Larry had followed Christ instead of the warlord? How different his life would be. Jesus said the road to destruction is wide and well-traveled. In comparison, He says, “Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:14) Larry took the wide road. He followed a warlord, and it ended with murder and prison. He missed the narrow road to life and freedom.

So, how does one find the narrow road? “Follow Me,” Jesus says. He doesn’t simply show us the way, He is the way. “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) It’s really that simple.