This morning’s ruminations… It is easy to get caught up in this world - the politics, the tragedies, the causes, the competitions, the perks and benefits, the challenges and accomplishments, the fandom of others who we admire, the cursing and contempt for others we despise, the pain and longing for something more, something better, something different, something new. We love to feel righteous, we love to win, we love to dream, we love the pleasures of this place, AND we even love to feel the tragic melancholy. We are in the intricate theater of life and in some very strange and unconscious ways, we even love to hate it. We are built for distractions and in this place there are many. Shadows and vapors dance around us as if they have substance, but my friends, these things are as temporary as the wind. You can lock onto something and pour your energy into it, but if it is from something less than God’s intentions for you, after a time, it will not satisfy. You can hide in fear of the vapors as they swarm around you and bleed you of the Light that sustains, wallowing in self-pity, or you can recognize Truth and Truth can set you free. The Truth is that we are on a battlefield that is real and dangerous. These distractions that surround us are not without purpose. You can say the bad stuff comes from the devil and the good comes from God, but the Truth is that ALL of it came from God. He wants to know the shape and size and strength of our hearts and He has made a testing ground for that specific goal. If you lift your eyes above the challenges and/or victories THIS day holds, you can clearly see ALL the blessings He has given you. On the wings of an Eagle you can view the whole of it and know that He has been with you all the way through. He has manipulated events, He has placed people in your life, He has taken things from you, He has moved things near to help you, He has even brought you to these words on Facebook at this very moment to give you pause and attention to His presence in your life. It is YOU who have chosen to let Him help you through the labyrinth, or not. And yes there is a devil scrambling to make you stumble. That guy is chucking things at you, knocking you down, spitting in your face and drinking in your frustration, pain, anger, and isolation like the finest wine to his lips. But God created him too and Jesus has already kicked that guy’s ass. That guy has a purpose and it is as the opposition in a very serious battle for your soul. Friends, despite popular opinion, not everyone goes to heaven. The devil herds goats to another place when the sheep follow their Shepherd Home. When I stand upon a high place and reflect on my life as a whole, it is abundantly clear that God has given me every reason to worship Him. And it is me who has followed the vapors into places I don’t belong. God has always made a way, and it is not my way, but His, I should follow. When I have pursued paths of my own ambition, my own distraction, or my own despondence, it does not satisfy. But when I follow His lead in my life, the yoke is easy and the burden is light. So why should I chase vapors when He has bigger plans for me in this life? Plans that may not align with my own dreams, but are better than I could imagine. Go ahead and chase the vapors of this life if that is what you want to do. Cling to the value systems of your generation and strive for lesser things. But me, and my house, we will praise the Lord. I will put my faith in Him who sustains me. I will worship the One Holy God and shove the distractions of this place beneath me as nothing but stones underfoot. Some stones may cause me to stumble, but I will get up in faith that I can climb over or around if it is God’s will for me. And if a stone is too large to pass, I’ll know it is His way of telling me to turn around. With practice and patience and focused attention on His will for me, I will give over the reins of my life to His Leadership and let Him walk me through. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. -Joshua 24:15
Posted on: Sat, 08 Nov 2014 13:45:16 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015