The Plumbline

You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully. Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees! (Psalm 119:4-5) Living in such a way so as to DELIBERATELY avoid harm or error - that is what God asks of us. It is this 'deliberate' part that we must focus on today. Conscious and intentional actions, done with consistency over the long run will lead to right living that honors God.  Too many times, actions are committed that are kind of impulsive - the exact opposite of deliberate or intentional behavior. We see or hear something, then we react. How many of us have come to realize that 'reacting' to life is seldom the best alternative? According to most psychological studies, deliberate individuals make very 'conscious' decisions that have come from quite a bit of analysis of the facts they are faced with. There are indeed times when we don't have all the facts, but we still need to make right decisions. This is why it is so important to g...

Tolerating evil leads only to more evil. And when good people stand by and do nothing while wickedness reigns, their communities will be consumed. (Bob Riley) The Lord approves of those who are good, but he condemns those who plan wickedness. Wickedness never brings stability, but the godly have deep roots. (Proverbs 12:2-3) Some may think wickedness can be overlooked, but as quickly as a wicked person's plans are set in motion, the godly put down even deeper roots. Why? The only way to withstand wickedness is by being deeply rooted in righteousness. Roots solidly planted in God's protective soil will help us stand strong against all manner of evil around us. Wicked people rise up quickly, but their influence soon wanes when people begin to get a whiff of their vile plans. Search for evil and it will find you (Proverbs 11:27). The godly seek good, finding it in God's favor, while the evil find no favor. Therefore, their influence will eventually begin to turn the other way...

Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life. (Galatians 6:7-8) Tricked, deceived, deluded, fooled, misguided - regardless of the word we use, the meaning is all the same. When we are 'misled' down any path, we reveal quite foolish choices that lead to very foolish actions. We cannot plant one seed and expect a different harvest. Seeds bear the fruit they were created to bear - period! Ignore God's wisdom to avoid such paths that lead to sinful actions, and we will reap the consequences of those actions. Can a man really claim to be 'ignorant' of his choices? He may be 'uneducated' or 'uninformed', but even those 'excuses' a...

My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are contrary to each other, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence? (Galatians 5:16) Choose to be led - those four words are quite informative, aren't they? We 'choose' 'to be' 'led'. Choice is always part of our walk with Jesus. Some may look at Christians as a bunch of people who are given no choice other than to never smoke, never chew, and never run with those who do. I am certain there are a few other 'don't do this or that' items we could add to that list, but you get the ...

People think that whatever they do is right, but the Lord judges their reason for doing it. (Proverbs 16:2) "Either I will find a way, or I will make one." (Philip Sidney) We all have those moments when we just "feel" like doing something is the right thing to do, so we just go ahead with our plans. There are even times when we kind of suspect there might be a little "issue" with what we are doing, but then we go ahead anyway. Whenever we just move without fully thinking it through, or getting God's perspective on the matter, we are usually pretty disappointed with the results! There are times when we have duped ourselves into believing our actions are fully "justified" by the actions of another. It is like we are saying, "Well, he did this, so I did that" - thinking our actions are "made all right" because of the actions of another. If they don't think about the outcome of their actions that is one thing, but we have ...

Have you ever blamed someone else for something you really should have taken responsibility for? It is like you know you initiated the matter, but then it escalated out of control, and you don't want to step up to take responsibility. Have you ever done this with God? We forget that he knows the intention of our hearts and sees the foolishness of our actions, but it as though we want to shift the blame to him. It is that person you brought into my life, God. It was because you didn't intervene sooner, God. It was that circumstance, God. Anything or anyone other than us - even God - is to blame. People ruin their OWN lives by their OWN foolishness, but that doesn't give them the privilege to blame God or others for THEIR foolishness. Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes. People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord. (Proverbs 19:2-3) Do you know what 'enthusiasm without knowledge' really is? It is doing, TH...

Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. (Romans 6:2-4) Can we continue...pretty pointed words, aren't they? We 'can' continue, but do we 'want' to continue? That is probably the most accurate way to say it. We might not believe it, but the 'bond' to sin has been broken when we said 'yes' to Jesus. The 'desire' remains, causing us much difficulty at times. We know the right words to say, but the wrong ones make it past our lips. We know the right actions to take, but we drag our feet. We understand right from wrong, but we lean to the wrong side of the decisions just a little too frequently. The struggle is real, but there is always another choice to be ma...

This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen. (I Peter 1:10-12) If the prophets could have known and experienced what we now know and experience in Christ Jesus, would there have been any stopping them? They longed to know more about his coming and what he would accomplish by it. They desired to see the fulfillment of all of God's promises - in the person of Jesus Christ. What the Old Testament prophets wanted to learn and experience we alrea...

I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question? The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different. (Romans 7:24-25) Many of us live 'lives of contradiction' - wanting to make right choices, but finding ourselves at the mercy of who knows what making all the wrong ones. If there is one thing I know it is this - the harder we 'try' to live right, the more we find ourselves decisions that are not always right. Why? This walk with Christ isn't meant to be us 'trying' - it is meant to be him empowering us through his Spirit and his Word to make the right decisions.  If we are constantly making wrong moves, does that mean we haven't really invited Christ into our lives? No, i...

You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully. Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees! Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands. As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should! I will obey your decrees. (Psalm 119:4-8) To what or whom do your compare your life's actions? God charges us with the responsibility and "goal" of keeping his commands - with consistency and dogged determination. We are actually reminded that the 'comparison' we need to make is with his commands - how well are we measuring up to what he asks of us? How consistent are we in making right choices? How much does 'obedience' out-trump all the other choices we could make? Did you ever stop to consider that your life of obedience is actually an offering of 'thanksgiving' to God? Our passage reminds us that when we live as we should (obedience), we are actually lifting thanks to God with each...

By your words I can see where I’m going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path. I’ve committed myself and I’ll never turn back from living by your righteous order. Everything’s falling apart on me, God; put me together again with your Word. Festoon me with your finest sayings, God; teach me your holy rules. (Psalm 119:105-108) How is your life going? You might be living by default rather than by any particular design. When you buy a new electronic device, there is a "factory preset" for how the system should work. It is called the "default" operating system. As time goes on and you become more familiar with what the device can actually do when it gets off the "default" mode, you might actually find you can do some pretty handy things with the device. "Default" is only a beginning spot - it isn't where we are designed to live. When we settle for "default", we negate the purpose of being created with the various abilities Go...

But the wisdom that comes from God is first of all pure, then peaceful, gentle, and easy to please. This wisdom is always ready to help those who are troubled and to do good for others. It is always fair and honest. People who work for peace in a peaceful way plant a good crop of right-living. (James 3:17-18) I daresay we all want to act wisely, but as much as we 'want' it, we fail to always exercise the greatest of wisdom in some of our choices. How can we 'want' something so badly and still miss out on it so frequently? I don't think it is by accident because we don't always remember the 'rules of wisdom': 1) If it is wise, it will be pure; 2) If it is wise, it will be done with a peace of mind and heart; 3) If it is wise, there will be a gentleness to the action; and 4) If it is wisdom, it may not seem to be the easiest course up front, but it will definitely be the easiest on the back-end! We are surrounded by all manner of impure options, thoughts, ...

Got any plans for your day? One nice thing about being on vacation is the lack of plans! We find ourselves very spontaneous, making plans only if it involves being at an established location at a certain time (such as to catch some fish in the early morning hours). Other than that, we kind of just like to take it one day at a time! Not a bad way to live, but how many of us can actually live like this? Unless we are retired, it is not likely!  We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it. (Proverbs 16:9) We plan the way we WANT to live - but only God makes us ABLE to live it. Plans and ability are two separate things, are they not? We make a lot of plans which we never seem able to fulfill, right? They just don't come together as they should, or never really get finished because other demands seem to creep up which require our attention. Let's be honest - we all have plans we sometimes have no ability to fulfill - we just hope we might make some ...

Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don’t quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality. (Romans 12:12) I have a theory that burnout is about resentment. And you beat it by knowing what it is you're giving up that makes you resentful. (Marissa Mayer) Ms. Mayer makes a very good point about 'burnout'. We create this scenario in our minds about having to 'give up' something in order to pursue something else, and it is this 'something else' that is making us feel burned out. Truth be told, it is the 'resentment' we form toward what we perceive as 'given up' that leads to the feelings of burnout. Remember, feelings can be fickle - they can lead us down pathways we don't want to be traveling. The harder we try to not focus on what we perceive we are 'giving up', the more the feelings of resentment grow toward whatever it ...

I may never write a book, but I am able to write a blog. A friend once asked me to write a book. The idea of having to put into words my life experiences almost intimidated me, not to mention the stories I have heard about getting a book edited and published. When I began to really think about it, I came to the realization we are all writing a book of sorts. We might call it the "book of decision" because each day is really a 'record' of the decisions we have made throughout that day. Each action we take is somehow "writing the next chapter" of our lives. Our response to today's events go a long way in determining the events of tomorrow, don't they? The events of one "chapter" open up many other chapters of victory or tragedy, gain or loss, celebration or grief for many more days to come. The same is true of our obedience - although it seems to us as less likely to affect as many or to be as profoundly impactful, each 'obedient choice...

I have been cleaning out small spaces lately, going through all of mom's belongings, sorting little things to give to family that will hold meaning to them. In the process, I came across a small trinket I have carried with me for years - a "Dope-Stopper" coin given to me by Art Linkletter when I was around 12 years of age. I was honored to hear him in person, having won a challenge at my local school to create a poster that spoke to remaining drug-free. In the height of the 60's, drugs were rampant and kids everywhere were beginning to experiment with the stuff. His goal was to speak truth and hope into the lives of pre-teens, on the cusp of making life-changing decisions as they entered their challenging teen years. My "Speed Kills" poster afforded me the opportunity to meet this great man, but most importantly, gave me the chance to hear his message of his daughter's addiction and her ultimate death. In the end, I walked away with his words echoing dee...

Most of us realize it is one thing to "know" something - quite another to "do" it. I know how to eat well - to choose the right things to eat continually is a very real struggle, though! We know rewards of eating right always outweigh the short-lived enjoyment of the wrong choices, but we have cravings that demand to be fed. So, why do we act surprised when we get on the scale and see a few extra pounds? We made the choices - now we see the consequences. We need to recognize that both the knowledge and the action must make a connection within us in order to get the results we desire. This is one of the hardest lessons to learn and to put into practice in our lives, is it not? Keep and live out the entire commandment that I'm commanding you today so that you'll live and prosper and enter and own the land that God promised to your ancestors. Remember every road that God led you on for those forty years in the wilderness, pushing you to your limits, testi...

Moments of hardship and trouble don't always seem like the things we will learn from, do they? As a matter of fact, we'd like to dis-enroll from the "school of hard knocks" and "difficult lessons", wouldn't we? We struggle, muddling through the bad stuff, until we can ultimately say that we "made it through". We don't get a diploma or certificate of completion to show we made it through, but we have learned a lesson or two that we probably were desperate to learn in our lives! The ride was tough, but the journey was well worth it. My troubles turned out all for the best—they forced me to learn from your textbook. Truth from your mouth means more to me than striking it rich in a gold mine. (Psalm 119:71-72) David reminds us frequently that the hard times forced him to learn from God's textbook - the Word - and they can do the same for us, as well. It almost goes without saying, but we find ourselves in the midst of a moment of indecisio...

The arrogant eyes (pride-filled attitude of looking down on others in judgment), the lying tongue (that destroys others and builds self up), the hands that murder the innocent (often without really "killing" them), and the heart that hatches evil plots (just because it can!). The feet that race down a wicked track - now that is indeed a description of some of our responses to temptation in life - we actually run toward them rather than away! Here are six things God hates, and one more that he loathes with a passion: eyes that are arrogant, a tongue that lies, hands that murder the innocent, a heart that hatches evil plots, feet that race down a wicked track , a mouth that lies under oath, a troublemaker in the family. (Proverbs 6:16-19) Feet carry us on our journey - they are what propel us forward or stop us in our tracks. In this case - they are racing forward - not at a pace that suggests any hesitation in the way they are going, but with determined purpose. Thei...

Gonna ask a tough question this morning - how many of us actually live disciplined lives? A disciplined life is characterized by self-control, orderly and prescribed conduct, and exercise in things that produce solid moral character.  Most of us would associate ourselves with some other 'title' than 'disciplined' - especially when we consider all the areas of our lives where discipline may not be exercised. I don't always have a disciplined life with every aspect of my house cleaning, nor my maintenance of flowerbeds. Sometimes I let dust build up, and a few things to get gangling growth before I do anything about it. If we have mastered the art of living disciplined lives, it is usually in some area such as our finances, health, exercise, etc.  The type of discipline that is required to produce a 'spacious life' encompasses these types of 'disciplined living' and much more. An undisciplined, self-willed life is puny; an obedient, God-willed li...