The Plumbline

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. (Psalm 16:8 NIV) With him, we can do all things. You've heard that, right? Why do we question his faithfulness to us by taking control of the reins all the time? We don't realize how much we are leaning on our own strength or ability until our feet go out from under us! Then, after we have fallen flat, we look up and seek his help. He was right there all the time - we just didn't listen to him, didn't reach out to him, didn't trust him with whatever it was we were going through. Let's get real here - we get so 'shaken up' in life because we choose to live as our own boss! The leadership of our lives isn't really going to get better under our control. It only gets better when we yield the control. Eyes always on the Lord. This might seem like an easy thing, but let me ask you when the last time was that you got even a bit distracted and gave into some temptation or we...

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. And we are confident in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we commanded you. May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ. (2 Thessalonians 3:3-5 NLT) If we are to be engaged with Jesus, we are also engaged with the enemy of our souls - engaged in a battle in which he desires nothing more than to have us 'disengage' from our relationship with Jesus. A cog in a wheel 'engages' with the cogs in a different wheel and the device turns. As long as we continue to engage with Jesus, our lives continue to grow. This is exactly what our enemy doesn't want to happen. He wants us to 'quit' on Jesus, while Jesus wants us to commit even deeper to the relationship. Always remember that we are both guarded from the evil one and strengthened in our continued walk with Jesu...

Flip Wilson used to quip, "You can't expect to hit the jackpot if you don't put a few nickels in the machine." This could be said of our 'investment' into our spiritual growth, as well. We need to 'put something into it' if we are to get as much out of it as Jesus intends! We aren't going to grow by osmosis or just by hearing a once-a-week sermon. We must put forth the effort to glean God's message to us from his Word, listen intently during times of worship and prayer, and then act upon what he brings to our attention.  You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. (Matthew 22:37 NLT) Heart, soul, and mind all engaged - no part of us left out in this pursuit. Devotion to God does indeed engage one's mind, but it also engages one's heart. In turn, one's actions begin to be changed - little by little, until we see an overwhelming transformation in our character. The change we might just be lon...