The idea made a lot of sense, financial sense. New housing developments on one side of the highway meant lots of people. On the other side, you guessed it — lots of things to buy. It was to be the Anderston Cross Commercial Centre. But in this case, urban renewal in the 1960s was promising more than it was about to deliver.
First things first, of course. Get the bridge over the highway built. But then the commercial zone with its shopping mall, offices, housing, bus station and fire station ran into what fishermen call “snags,” of one sort or another. The dreamy multi-level complex connected by sloping walkways and unique open-air escalators was just so much easier to sketch on paper than to build out of concrete.
And so it was all scaled back in size. That meant the completed high-level pedestrian bridge was left hanging in mid-air, over vacant land, 100 meters away from the main deck of the shopping center. For forty years this obvious black eye assumed the title of “Bridge to Nowhere.” Meanwhile, the people were cut off from safe access to the city center.
Here’s the good news: The commercial center in Glasgow, Scotland, is now called Cadogan Square. Nothing like a new name to erase bad memories. And the bridge was completed this month. We’re back in business.
I read this story and thought of the verses in 1 Timothy 2:5-6: “There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a ransom for all.” Here is a Bridge that won’t leave you “Nowhere.” The resurrection of Jesus is God’s receipt to us and certifies the bridge is not only fully built, but also paid in full! Perhaps your efforts at self-improvement and your struggles to turn the page and begin again have abandoned you on a “bridge to nowhere.” Have you ever felt that a piece of the puzzle is missing? that you just can’t get this done on your own?
Take a look at 1 Timothy for yourself. Read about the bridge that can take you all the way and accomplishes what your own efforts can never do. The Lord Jesus is the bridge to our relationship with God. He is called the Mediator. He stands between you and God, and because He died for our sins, He can offer the gift of salvation — forgiveness of sins — to you. Now there’s a gift worth giving thanks for. We can be forever grateful. Literally!