Here we are folks! At the final stage of our three-part series. We have arrived at Forsaken.

So far in Lot’s wife’s journey, we have experienced her life before Lot, marked by pride, and her life after marriage with Lot, shaped by humility. And now, we’ve come to the crucial part of her tragic story: Forsaken. How a single act of disobedience turned her into a pillar of salt.

Because of the city’s great wickedness, God determined to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Two angels came to warn Lot, urging him to take his family and flee. At dawn, they led Lot, his wife, and their daughters out of the city with clear instructions: “Run for your lives! Don’t look back. Head for the mountains, or you will be swept away! Lot’s wife hesitated, but God’s mercy carried them to safety. They fled to a small town called Zoar, spared from the devastation raining down behind them. But in this moment of rescue, as judgment fell on the land they once called home, Lot’s wife did what she had been commanded not to do, she looked back.

And in that single act, she was turned into a pillar of salt.

Her story ends in tragedy. After leaving behind her old life, learning the daily rhythms of humility, and walking alongside Lot and his people, it was still her heart’s longing for what was behind her that sealed her fate. One backward glance revealed where her devotion truly lay.

Lot’s wife becomes a symbol of what happens when we allow ourselves to be tied too tightly to what God has called us to leave behind. She was delivered, spared, and given a way forward, yet her eyes and heart were still bound to the past.

A Personal Reflection

The story of Lot’s wife hits closer to home than I’d like to admit. When I read it, I don’t just see her mistake, I see my own. I can think of moments when I’ve prayed desperately for God to lead me out of something, but deep down I still clung to what was familiar. Letting go isn’t always easy, even when I know He has something better ahead.

There are seasons where I’ve longed for change, but fear or comfort held me back. I’ve told God I trust Him, yet found myself glancing over my shoulder, wondering if I was really ready to release the past. In those moments, I realize I’m not so different from Lot’s wife.

Her story makes me stop and ask: What am I still looking back to? What do I need to lay down once and for all?

I don’t want my life to be marked by hesitation or regret. I want to step forward, fully trusting that when God calls me ahead, the best of my story is not behind me, it’s with Him, in the new places He’s leading me.

Closing Thoughts

As we bring this three-part series to a close, we see the full arc of Lot’s wife’s journey - Pride, Humility, Forsaken.

Her story is brief in Scripture, yet it carries a weight that has echoed through generations. We see her in luxury and pride, clothed in wealth and self-assurance. We see her in humility, stripped of comfort, learning daily rhythms of service and faith. And finally, we see her forsaken, turned into a pillar of salt because her heart could not release what was behind her.

Lot’s wife reminds us of the sobering truth that what we cling to can cost us our future. Pride can blind us, humility can shape us, and disobedience can destroy us. But her life also serves as a warning filled with grace, for in remembering her, we are given the chance to choose differently.

May her story remind us to let go of what God has called us to leave behind, to embrace the shaping power of humility, and to move forward in full obedience. For our future is not in the past, it is in the faithful steps we take today.