A Letter to the East Texas Drivers in the Fatal Hit & Run Crashes

In the first week of December, there have been 3 major hit-and-run accidents in our area. 

In Lufkin, two of those happened on December 5. One led to the fatality of a pedestrian and another to the hospitalization of motorcyclist. In Nacogdoches on December 2, an elderly man was killed in another hit-and-run auto-pedestrian accident. 

At last report, police have made no arrests in any of these cases.  That means there are 2 persons out there that knowingly hit a human being with their vehicle and then made the decision to leave the scene and let that person die.  Another person is in the general public who caused serious injury to someone by running over him while riding his motorcycle. 

I would like to address these three persons not with spite nor malice, but with Christian love and concern.  The goal here is not that you come forward so that you can receive your earthly justice, the goal is that you do what is right in the eyes of our loving and merciful God. 

To the person and persons involved in the hit and run accidents: 

First, let me say, I am not a theologian.  I’m a simple sinner just like you and everyone else.  I do believe that if we only allow ourselves to listen to God with no pre-set worldly agenda, He will give us insight into what is truly right and what He wants us to do. 

With that in mind, here are some personal observations: 

Jesus loves you no matter your faults.  He extends his mercy and forgiveness to you no matter your crimes.  

However, that mercy and forgiveness is a two-way street.  You must submit to God under His terms, not yours.  If you pray to God in solitude and tell Him that you are sorry for your crime, yet do not come forward to your brothers and sisters and admit your guilt and thereby try to skirt justice, you are apologizing under your own terms, not His. You are establishing conditions upon your confession.   

According to Jesus, the two greatest commandments are to love God with all your heart, your strength, your soul and your mind -- achieve that by keeping his commandments, and love your neighbor as yourself.  Meditate upon this when you are trying to do what is right.  

If you were behind the wheel in any of these three incidents, I do not envy the guilt you currently are facing.  Coming forward to admit your crime will bring about consequences that will be very tough to endure, however, in the eyes of God it is the right thing to do. 

Someday every one of us will stand before God for an accounting of our actions on Earth.  All of us will have a long list of transgressions. I truly believe that part of God’s judgment will revolve around what we did to correct those sins, how did we right the wrong? 

To you, my brother or sister in Christ, coming forward to admit your guilt will be an extremely tough thing to do, but this is also a huge opportunity to take a giant step towards the grace and forgiveness of God.  

I pray you do the right thing.