How far to Wall Drug from here?

Have you ever seen this a billboard or bumper sticker like this?

wall drug

In my road trip out west, we encountered numerous Wall Drug signs. See my previous posts of my Yellowstone trip for some background info.

Wall Drug is a small town in western South Dakota. It’s near Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands. But you probably would not drive there just to see Wall Drug. It makes a great pit stop when seeing many other attractions. And for us, it was the last stop before heading east, back home.

As far as a tourist trap, this one sets out a fantastic bait. There are signs for miles and miles in every direction telling that Wall Drug is getting closer. They advertise anything and everything. If curiosity killed the cat then I am glad I am not a cat. I don’t recall when I first heard about Wall Drug but I feel like I have know about all my life. Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands, the Grand Canyon, and similar places are places you just know about. Wall Drug is like that. You just always know that it is a real place. They have really good marketing! Like this picture I found online.

Wall_Drug_Sign-afghanistan

When you are at Wall Drug, there are, of course, the shops. But I found that the real treasure was in all of the pictures they have hanging on any available wall. Pictures of all things Wall Drug. Like the one of the marine. There were hundreds of people from all over the world with signs saying how far Wall Drug was from their location. It was bizarre and fascinating!


Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Jesus says that the disciples would be empowered to be witnesses. Not lawyers, judges, or even jury members but simply witnesses. They were supposed to tell what they have seen and heard.

Isn’t that what these Wall Drug signs that are scattered all over the earth are doing? They, in a very clear manner, state that Wall Drug is X miles away. They might have pictures or sayings on them as well. But they are not Wall Drug. The signs are just that, signs. They tell of something else.

When people see your life, what message are they getting? John the Baptist was a sign. He was very clear that he was not the Christ. Read the full story here.

I close with these thoughts:

  • I am a sign and so are you.
  • God has filled His followers with His Spirit.
  • He can help us to display the right message.
  • What are people reading in your life?

 

By the way, Google maps tell me that I am 775 miles from Wall Drug.

9 Days and 3100 Miles.

The midwest is boring. There are no mountains to view. Hot springs and geysers are nowhere to be found. Can’t find any faces carved out of rock on a mountain either. But if you pile into a minivan and drive thousands of miles, you can see these things for yourself.

And that is what we did. Me, my wife, my 2 kids, and my in-laws. 9 days and 3100 miles.

We saw Mount Rushmore:

mount rushmore

Yellowstone National Park:

Yellowstone 2

Grand Teton Nation Park:

grand tetons 2

And finally, Wall Drug:

wall drug

It was simply amazing to behold such varied and wonderful features. It was a great combination of God’s handiwork (Yellowstone and Grand Tetons) and man’s workmanship (Mt. Rushmore). I didn’t even mention the Badlands!

For the month of September, I am going to highlight each place I have pictured here. So if you feel up to a road trip, follow me and let’s go!

FYI, this blog is now http://www.twominuteswithtim.com so please, share it with your friends and they can hop in the van on our upcoming trip as well.