The Plumbline

Zig Zigler said, "If you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time", and I cannot agree more. The 'aim' we take in life determines the course we will follow. If we aim to please people, we will find ourselves constantly changing what we do, how we do it, when it is done, and so on. If we aim to please ourselves all the time, we will find the more we try to please ourselves, the less likely we are to be pleased - we will always want more. The more we aim at pleasing God, the less we will seek the approval of others and the more we will seek his will to be done in our lives. How is it we 'seek God' above all other ambitions, desires, or impressions this world gives us? I think it begins when we determine we want his will over the will of others, and especially over our own will. Sinful behaviors manifest when we 'dabble' with sin's tug even a little bit. The more we resist the 'tiny tugs' of sin, the more we will resist the bigger ones tha...

 I know I was ready to fall, but, Lord, your faithful love supported me. I was very worried and upset, but you comforted me and made me happy! (Psalm 94:18-19) I don't know about you, but there have been plenty of warnings for me when I am about to 'fall' into temptation of some kind. It could just be the knowledge that what I am about to do is a bit 'out on the edge' of what God really wants for his kids. It could be that I hear a clear warning in my subconscious mind, the voice of the Holy Spirit, warning me to just stop. Either way, I had the chance, but did I always listen? Nope! Does that still happen? From time to time, but less and less frequently. Why? I have learned to lean into God's 'faithful support' when I am just about to take that final step into compromise. There is much to be said about 'knowing you are ready to fall' and and having his unfailing love and support to keep you from doing so. Knowing when we are about to compromise ...

Know how to listen, and you will profit even from those who talk badly. (Plutarch) You might think you are a very religious person. But if your tongue is out of control, you are fooling yourself. Your careless talk makes your offerings to God worthless. (James 1:26) I cannot help but think of the times I have droned on and on with someone about a topic I have such interest in, only to realize they have not been listening because I am the only one interested in the topic! I have had to learn to 'read the crowd', so to speak, and listen more than I speak. It was not an easy lesson to learn, but a necessary one, especially as it pertains to sharing the truth of the gospel message. I used to think I needed to preach a sermon, but then realized my life was speaking louder than my words. Know how to listen - this is our instruction today. The tongue can wag on and on, making it hard to really 'hear' what is being said. The more 'words' we use, the more we think others...

My son, pay attention to what I say. Listen closely to my words. Don’t let them out of your sight. Never stop thinking about them. These words are the secret of life and health to all who discover them. Above all, be careful what you think because your thoughts control your life. (Proverbs 4:20-23) When God asks us to pay attention it is just that he knows how easily we become distracted by other things or people. The 'loudest voice' or the 'shiniest image' gets our attention and before we know it, we are following the crowd and not him. I recently attended a large gathering and at the end of the event, huge crowds all marched out in no particular order, but with intent. I took particular notice of those who were trying to 'swim upstream', pushing past those who were intent on going one direction when they were committed to going the other. Sometimes our Christian walk can seem a bit like we are 'swimming upstream' while the crowds are swimming smoothly ...

...if my people who are called by my name become humble and pray, and look for me, and turn away from their evil ways, then I will hear them from heaven. I will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14) If my people - notice that God doesn't say 'when', but 'if'. There is a condition - we must make the first move when it comes to repentance. This message isn't written to those who don't already have a relationship with him - it is written to those 'called by his name'. These are believers who obviously have grown cold, a little too apathetic and indifferent. This is where we find ourselves whenever we allow our focus to become clouded by the things of this world - coldness drifts in, hunger begins to be fulfilled by something other than his presence. If we want to 'come back' from wherever it is we have drifted, it begins by humbling ourselves and asking for his help to return! Humble yourself, pray, and look for him - these ...

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. (James 1:5-8) We are reminded in Proverbs 3:5-7 to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take." As we all have varying backgrounds, we likely approach life's challenges in various ways. We might just find ourselves turning to this world's wisdom first, then when it doesn't do what we hoped it would do, we turn to God. As long as we rely upon the wisdom the world offers, we will be limited in our perception of th...

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. (Psalm 23:1) Take note, it is all we NEED, not all we WANT. We might want things that aren't always all that beneficial for us to have, but God knows what we NEED and he always works things to meet those needs. John reminds us, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." (10:27) Whose voice do you hear most - God's or your own? Who we listen to the most might just be the factor in what it is we pursue! Sheep know the voice of the Shepherd. It is how sheep know how to follow THEIR shepherd and not wander away with just 'any old shepherd' who calls for them to come their way. Sheep might 'intermingle' while grazing in the field, but when they hear the voice of their master, they know when it is time to separate and go where he leads. We might 'intermingle' a bit with this world and hear all the voices calling to us to 'come', but there is only one voice we are actually ...

Are you able to listen when there are multiple distractions? I have difficulties 'filtering' out sound, conversations, or music lyrics when I am really trying to concentrate. I was never one of those students who could study with the most popular band's music blaring from the stereo in the background. I also know I don't do well where there are multiple distractions. My desk faces the wall, not the window. My computer desk is free of papers and the like because it would just distract me during my quiet time each morning. When I travel, I find a quiet spot, take my coffee and sit a while with God, listening as he shows me things in the scripture. Remove the distractions and we might just find ourselves able to 'listen to the message' God wants to bring into our lives today. “I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death int...

Be alert and think straight. Put all your hope in how kind God will be to you when Jesus Christ appears. Behave like obedient children . Don’t let your lives be controlled by your desires, as they used to be. Always live as God’s holy people should, because God is the one who chose you, and he is holy. That’s why the Scriptures say, “I am the holy God, and you must be holy too.” (I Peter 1:13-16 CEV) In medical assessment, a patient who is less alert than their baseline assessment had been at a previous point might be under the untoward influence of a sedative, or perhaps have suffered a life-altering event such as stroke or bleed into their brain. To be alert, one is to be fully awake and able to direct full attention toward something. If someone is awake, but drifts easily back to sleep, without being able to focus or concentrate on what you are asking them to do, we begin to look for causes of this "drift" in attentiveness and alertness. It is this "alertness...

  If you wake me each morning with the sound of your loving voice,  I’ll go to sleep each night trusting in you.  Point out the road I must travel;   I’m all ears, all eyes before you.  Save me from my enemies,   God — you’re my only hope!  Teach me how to live to please you,   because you’re my God.  Lead me by your blessed Spirit   into cleared and level pastureland. (Psalm 143:8-10) The sound of God's voice - do you know what that is? Do you recognize his still small voice? When we learn to recognize God's voice, there is a certain sense of peace that settles into our hearts. We begin to 'operate' on a different level because we know his guidance will establish our path. All God asks of each of us is that we be 'all ears' when it comes to his voice, and 'closed ears' when it comes to listening to the voice of temptation or evil.  God's greatest delight is for us to desire to live in a manner that pleases him - allowing him to hel...

This is God’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’ (Jeremiah 33:2-3) Why does God, the one who made all things and knows all things, require us to ask for whatever it is we need or want? To be required to ask when he knows already seems kind of foolish on the surface, but if you stop to consider what "asking" entails, you may come to a revelation of the true purpose of asking. Asking requires us to humble ourselves, not to mention allowing for time to bring a clarification of our wants and needs. Have you ever sought one thing, only to find when you received it the "thing" did not do for you whatever you hoped it would? I realized just how much I didn't really need what I asked for - it was just something to "fill space" in my life, but that "space" really should hav...

  For I know the plans I have for you,” says the  Lord . “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. (Jeremiah 29:11-13) There are seasons in our lives where 'planning' is just not possible. We call those crisis times. In those moments, we react to the current needs, forgetting all about plans we may have made or plans we'd like to make. Why? Our attention is required in the present moment. It is good to know that even when we are not able to 'plan' or 'work the plan' we have made, God remains fully in control of our lives. His plan is being worked, even when ours may have had to go on hold for a bit! As we move from crisis moment to 'normal routine' again, we may assume the plans we had made, but it is quite possible our plans were altered by the crisis. Why? The crisis made something clearer, rearranged our priorities...

If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable. (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life! Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over. But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline; don’t sulk under his loving correction. It’s the child he loves that God corrects; a father’s delight is behind all this. (Proverbs 3:5-12) I have been guilty of 'setting out' before considering the 'destination' - how about you? We might do this more often than we think. It may not be us setting out for a physical destination as much as going places in our minds we should not be goin...

Everyone enjoys giving good advice, and how wonderful it is to be able to say the right thing at the right time! (Proverbs 15:23) I don't know about you, but 'giving' advice is much easier for me than 'heeding' it when someone else gives it to me. I want to think it through, mull it over, and determine 'if' I should actually take it to heart. I have had appliance repairmen tell me not to buy 'X' appliances, only to find those who own them say they are the most dependable appliances they have had. Whose advice do I rely upon - the one who made the purchase and uses the device, or the one who comes along when things don't function as they should? If the one purchasing is also the one who is responsible to maintain what is purchased, I might just rely upon their 'advice' a little more! Why? The one paying the price is also the one having to do what it takes to keep things running as they should. Jesus paid the price for the sins of this worl...

God called again, “Samuel!”—the third time! Yet again Samuel got up and went to Eli, “Yes? I heard you call me. Here I am.” That’s when it dawned on Eli that God was calling the boy. So Eli directed Samuel, “Go back and lie down. If the voice calls again, say, ‘Speak, God. I’m your servant, ready to listen.’” Samuel returned to his bed. Then God came and stood before him exactly as before, calling out, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel answered, “Speak. I’m your servant, ready to listen.” (I Samuel 3:8-9) Samuel is eager to respond to the voice he hears. Why? He was simply trying to fulfill his everyday tasks, ready to learn what he could as he went about his routine in the temple, in service to the priests. Sometimes we get a little confused as to what we are to do with what it is we are hearing - we think we hear one thing, but could it really be something else? There are probably many times we hear God's voice, but because we aren't sure of the source, we go to what is familiar to us...

Then God came and stood before him exactly as before, calling out, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel answered, “Speak. I’m your servant, ready to listen.” (I Samuel 3:10) Wisdom dictates we listen more than we speak - but I have to honestly tell you I don't always do well with that one requirement. Listening is an art - learned not because we really want to learn it, but because if we don't learn how to listen, we will eventually get life pretty much as we like it, but we might just be the only ones left in the picture once we do! I suspect there is much to this listening "art" which many of us have yet to perfect. In fact, learning this "art" of listening requires we not only learn how to "tune into" the voice we hear, but we learn to "recognize" the voice we are hearing. I think many of us hear those "voices" in our heads - hopefully not too many of them - but we don't always know which one is the one we should be listening to....

We aim above the mark to hit the mark. (Ralph Waldo Emerson) Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live... (I Thessalonians 4:11-12) Knowing where we are aiming is important, because our aim determines our course. We don't walk with an aim in front of us and then walk backwards. We set one foot in front of the other, hopefully in the direction of our target. Living a 'quiet life' is not having our head in the sand all of the time. We must engage in life, but in a respectful, peaceful, and kind manner. Christ didn't stick his head in the sand, avoiding all the tough issues, but rather he confronted them with a positive example, loving attitude, and kindness of heart that drew people to him. A 'quiet life' isn't a 'sheltered' life - one in which we withdraw from what is happening around us. In fact, accor...

The greater our knowledge increases the more our ignorance unfolds. (John F. Kennedy) The mind of a person with understanding gets knowledge; the wise person listens to learn more. (Proverbs 18:15) I would like us to consider if we are listening to just 'hear', or are we listening to 'learn more'? The first option is a very common occurrence in society today - someone talks, we listen, but do we really hear their heart, understand their turmoil, or experience their grief? When we listen to 'learn more' there is an investment of ourselves in the life of the one we are actually 'hearing'.  God wants to be the first person we listen to 'learn more' from in this walk we undertake each day with him. He also wants us to develop this sense of 'learning more' when we engage with others who come across our path each day. It is good to hear but hearing alone doesn't really require that much effort. We get 'knowledge' as we hear, but we ...

But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way ! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master. (Romans 6:23) Stephen Covey was the one to remind us of the importance of listening to understand, not as so many of us do by listening with the eager intent to reply. God isn't looking for 'replies' as much as he is looking for us to make right life choices because we listened. I don't know about you, but I listen a whole lot of the time with the intent of replying, asking questions, getting answers. I don't listen as frequently with the intention of doing what I am asked to do! It is very important for us to recognize the one who is actually speaking to us. I have lived over six decades no...

You’ve kept track of my every toss and turn through the sleepless nights, each tear entered in your ledger, each ache written in your book. (Psalm 56:8) As I grow a bit older each year, I notice new 'aches and pains' that weren't there a few years back. I hear the creak and crackle of the joints. I don't sleep all the way through the night anymore and find I toss and turn a bit too much at times. It is good to know God isn't unaware of these changes - in fact, he is tracking them probably more than we are! Sleepless nights aren't very frequent for me. In fact, I usually find it easy to get to sleep - it is falling back to sleep after I have awakened in the wee hours of the morning that is harder. I have noticed it is often in these times of being awake and 'tossing about' a bit that God speaks to me. He not only shows me things I need to address in my life, but it is amazing how he will spark a creative idea or help me 'fix' a problem I have b...