Atlas

Blueprints and Road Maps

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kansasBlueprints and road maps are useful and necessary tools to get you from where you are to where you’re going.  I have the same opinion of the book of James.  It’s a book of divine directives, that will help you negotiate the challenging hairpin curves of life.

There are 5 points of interest that are the keys to everything that James says in this book:  “Submit to God. But resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded people! Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you (James 4:7-10).”

These words are good advice and principles to be practiced.  To apply them to your life, focus on the 5 points of interest:

  • Insist: Submit to God
  • Resist the Devil
  • Persist: Draw near to God
  • Desist: Cleanse your hands and purify your heart
  • Consist: A life of humility—humble yourself

These 5 points can be summarized by one statement: The life that’s yielded to God is a life that’s shielded by God.

The Mumble and Grumble of Whinersville

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grouchI had to get my atlas out last night to make sure I wasn’t lost.  It seemed like whether I was listening to my radio, watching TV, or reading the newspaper, people were whining:  “I deserve this,” or “I didn’t deserve that!”  I thought I had been mysteriously transported to Whinersville.

Whining, mumbling, and grumbling is a worldwide problem of epidemic proportions.  Europe, South America, Asia, Canada, and the good old USA are afflicted with this debilitating attitude.

This must be a centuries old problem because both Peter and Paul said  people should be careful about the expression of their attitude:

  • Peter said we should, “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling (I Peter 4:9).”
  • Paul said to, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation (Philippians 2:14-15).”

Before you complain to God, and say:  “This is something I don’t deserve.” Think about it.  Do you really want Him to serve you a plateful of what you deserve? When God fills my plate, I’m like a child:  I want a tiny portion of the Brussel sprouts of His judgment and heaping-helpings of His mercy-filled dips of mashed taters and cream gravy.  I never want what I deserve—the wilting heat of His anger.  I’d much rather bask in the Son-shine of His forgiveness.

Like David, we can find comfort in the loving nature of God and shout: “Lord, You are good and ready to forgive; and, Your abundant loyal love flows generously over all who cry out to You . . . guide me along Your path, so that I will live in Your truth (Psalm 86:10-11).”  Even whiners grow mute and their grumbles are silenced when they turn their thoughts to God’s “abundant loyal love.”

Follow the Leader

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follow-the-leaderWhen they first made their appearance, they were difficult to use, hard to read, and thought to be a technological gadget with reliability that was suspect.  The handheld GPS units that were produced and sold by the Magellan Corporation in 1989 pale in comparison to the refined and powerful technology of today.

Because people want to be led and informed by GPS, the automobile industry is producing cars with navigation modules as part of the basic package.  Some drivers have become so dependent on this technology they can’t read a map, and they don’t know East from West.

I know from personal experience, that these units are not failsafe. While driving through Memphis one day, my unit instructed me to “turn left.” After I obeyed,  I quickly realized that I was heading South on a commuter line and the lights of a Northbound train were bearing down on me.

As I made another quick left turn, I was reminded of Proverbs 14:12: “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”

The next time you find yourself lost or perplexed. Look to God for guidance:

  • The Good Shepherd will lead you to the green pastures and down by the still waters. (Psalm 23).
  • God will lead you to a life of righteousness: Psalm 5:8: Lead me, O Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; Make Your way straight before my face.
  • When you follow God, you will be led down the path of truth: Psalm 25:5: Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day.
  • There is no need to stumble through the darkness, because God will light the path ahead of you: Psalm 43:3: Send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me

As you take your first steps today, use Proverbs 3:5-6 as a prayer:  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.

Is Left Ever Right?

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IMG_0530 (1)Have you noticed that some cities seem to be in a perpetual state of ruin?  You know the cities I’m thinking of, the ones that seem to take pride in roads lined with bright orange traffic cones:  As far as the eye can see, they dot the highway and try to guide you safely down the road.

A day or two ago, I was driving through an intersection laced with orange cones and concrete barriers, and I got a little nervous. It looked like I was being directed into the oncoming lane of traffic.  For a moment I thought the engineer had been imported from England and he had brought his, drive-on-the-left-side-of-the-road, mentality with him.

This experience reminds me of the message on a sign:  “One Way or Another.”  The sober truth is that  when you die, you will go one way or another.

The good news is that there is a road map to lead you through the detours and confusing  intersections of life.  Jesus said that He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6).  If you will make the right turn and follow Jesus, you will never get left by Him.

Thoughtful or Thought-Filled?

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I’m not sure that I’m a thoughtful person; however, I have no doubt that I am thought-filled.  My mind races from one thought to another at a speed, that even NASCAR can’t match.

If all these thoughts were positive and constructive, I’d be the envy of the world.  The trouble is that many of them are negative and destructive.

I’ve come to realize that either I control my thoughts or they control me.  Our thoughts are seeds that blossom into feelings and behaviors that make us either blooming idiots or citizens of substance.

Dick Tracy

The increase in technology is directly connected to a decrease in thought-regulating quiet time.  Think with me for a moment about the rapid changes in society.  I can remember the Sunday edition of the paper and the watch-like apparatus Dick Tracy wore on his wrist.  Dick could be seen talking to a fellow detective with this device that was a pre-cursor to cell phones and video conferencing.  Most everyone thought this was far-fetched-thinking that would never happen in their lifetime, but we’ve gone from party-lines to cell phones with video capabilities in just a few short years.

And shortened years just might be the diagnosis, if we don’t learn how to slow down and still keep pace.  The question is:  How can we slow down, when the computer keeps us ramped up?

Here’s something I’m trying.  Every time I do a Google search, I pause just a second before I begin and say something positive and spiritual.  Prayers like this  have their roots in the words of the Apostle Paul:  Pray without ceasing (I Thess. 5:17); and in the thoughts of the old Quaker theologian, Rufus Jones:  Let a person’s inner being be fortified with a faith in God and all his creative powers are quickened, his marching strength is heightened and his grip on everyday things is immensely increased. It is as though he had tapped a hidden reservoir of power.

Let me share a few quick phrases that can be effective keyboard prayers:

·        Bless the Lord, my soul.

·        May Your will be accomplished in me.

·        Not my will, but yours.

·        Teach me. Guide me. Keep me

·        The Lord is the Rock of my salvation.

Instead of embracing the mentality of Atlas and trying to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, I’m learning to use these mini-prayers as pace-setters as I walk with the Lord.

I think these words of Jesus from The Message provide a good summary of my thoughts:  Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly (Matthew 11:28-30).

I hope this thought keeps you thinking.