The Plumbline

If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere. (Frank A. Clark)  The Lord is making roads through the sea. He is making a path for his people, even through rough waters. (Isaiah 43:16) The obstacles one faces in life can sometimes be a little overwhelming - even to the point we want to find another path or just plain give up entirely. The good news is that the path God prepares may not be obstacle free, but it is prepared, provisioned, and protected. Prepared by the hand of God. Provisioned with his grace and strength. Protected by his mighty armies in high places, even when we cannot see his protection! The path without obstacles is really not all that great! The obstacles are what brings out the character of God within our lives. Those obstacles actually show us how dependent we are upon ourselves to remove each and every one of them in our own power or strength. It is when we realize they are bigger or more numerous than we can 'deal with' on ou...

If you're walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you'll make progress. (Barack Obama) Whoever abandons the right path will be severely disciplined; whoever hates correction will die.  (Proverbs 15:10) The 'right path' is usually something each of us pursues these early weeks of a new year. It is like we got a 'clean slate' at midnight on the 31st of December and now we are free to 'do over' what we didn't do so well with over the past 365 days. While that is a little exaggerated, you get the point. We all need a 'do over' from time to time, don't we? If you are anything like me, those don't need to happen just in the first month of the new year - they need to happen ALL year! The right path is laid out, the plans are made, then somewhere down the line, there is a missed opportunity or missed step and we are 'off-course' for some strange reason. The 'strange reason' is likely t...

Show me what you want me to do. You are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me over level ground. (Psalm 143:10) Sometimes we want level ground pathways in life, but they just don't seem to come. We find ourselves in all manner of 'uneven' paths, trying us from every angle spiritually, emotionally, financially, and even physically. They aren't meant to stop our forward progress with Jesus, but they certainly put a 'kink' in it at times! It is never a bad prayer to ask God to show us to that level ground in life. In fact, he'd relish the opportunity to take you from the 'unevenness' of life's challenges into the 'evenness' of his peace, presence, and purpose. You might find yourself there right now - facing challenges that you'd never thought you'd have to face. The more 'uneven' the path right now, the more you can count on God helping you navigate to 'even' ground once again. It might not seem like it, but that brut...

For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. (Isaiah 43:19) The 'old' may have seemed pretty awesome, but have you ever considered what God may be doing when he is beginning something new in you? There have been times when I have been so comfortable with the 'old new' that God did in me that I resist his moving me on into something 'new' again. I want to look back instead of forward, making it harder for him to keep me focused on what he is about to do. God may be laying out some pretty awesome change right ahead of us, but as long as we are constantly looking back and longing for the 'old new', we aren't going to fully embrace the 'new' he has in store. I have noticed that God begins something 'new' and then he kind of 'wraps up' the 'old new' for us. It is like he is repainting the walls of o...

Rollo May has reminded us, "It is an ironic habit of human beings to run faster when we have lost our way." Really ponder that reminder for a bit, because most of the 'running' we do in life is a result of having made choices that have led us down paths we would otherwise not have traveled. It also seems we 'pick up pace' as we run toward what we know we shouldn't be moving toward in the first place. We have chosen what we want over what we need. No, the Lord is all I need. He takes care of me. My share in life has been pleasant; my part has been beautiful. I praise the Lord because he advises me. Even at night, I feel his leading. I keep the Lord before me always. Because he is close by my side, I will not be hurt. (Psalm 16:5-8) God's plan is for us to pursue godliness - decisions that will promote and maintain his presence, peace, and power within our lives. Does it ever amaze you that the 'wrong direction' is the easiest one to pursue? I th...

Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. (Robert Frost) Show me the path where I should go, O Lord; point out the right road for me to walk. (Psalm 25:4) Which path have you taken - the one less traveled by, or the one that has been traveled well? It is fine to follow a well-worn path for a period of time, but it could just be the 'wear and tear' of that path is greater than your life can handle. The one less traveled by may be a little scarier at times, but I have found the discoveries along it are greater than I could have ever imagined. There is a 'right road' for us to travel - it is seldom the easiest, nor is it the most 'frequented' by the masses. Does it make us 'odd' for choosing that path? No, it might just mean we are a little more 'intimidated' by the one everyone is taking than we are when we step onto the one that is marked with 'faith markers' all along the w...

Oh, that my ways were directed and established to observe Your statutes [hearing, receiving, loving, and obeying them]! Then shall I not be put to shame [by failing to inherit Your promises] when I have respect to all Your commandments. I will praise and give thanks to You with uprightness of heart when I learn [by sanctified experiences] Your righteous judgments [Your decisions against and punishments for particular lines of thought and conduct]. (Psalm 119:5-7) We are probably frequently heard crying out to God, asking him to set our ways straight again because for some unknown reason we have managed to stray from the path we should be on once again. Our plea - direct and establish my ways - not to live as I want, but to observe your Word in its entirety. A "directed" life is one that is both God guided and regulated, so the course is made certain and true. It is like when I used to ride the little cars at Disneyland as a child - I had no idea the metal bar which ran ...

For people who are stumbling toward ruin, the message of the cross is nothing but a tall tale for fools by a fool. But for those of us who are already experiencing the reality of being rescued and made right, it is nothing short of God’s power. ( 1 Corinthians 1:18 ) A survivor is one who has 'beaten the odds', coming out on the other side of something they had a hard time enduring. If God is the one who fights with us, helping us with our 'survival skills' in the midst of whatever it is we have been called to endure, then we can be assured that we will come out on the other side. Will we have 'war wounds' of some sort? Probably. We aren't guaranteed to be 'wound free', but we are promised to be 'held together' and 'put perfectly together' in the presence of Jesus. There are a great many of us that can proclaim we have been 'redeemed' - made new through the power and grace of God in our lives. We have undergone a process of tr...

Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. (Robert Frost) You haven't traveled my road anymore than I have traveled yours. Our roads may have intersected here and there, but the road we each travel is uniquely our own. At each major intersection in life, we make a choice - we choose one path or the other - we don't travel them both. Perhaps we follow in the footsteps of someone who has traveled portions of that path before, finding our view of the path just slightly different. As similar as my BFF and I are, as we take a road trip, or enjoy a stroll along a forest trail, we 'take in' our surroundings in different ways. I will remark about one thing I saw, only to find she didn't see it at all and vice-versa. Why did we not experience the path the same? We are unique - our eyes and hearts are open, but we might just find we are taking in life in just a little different manner as we travel paths that see...

If God were to point out something in your life that needs a little changing, what would that be? My attitude stinks at times toward certain people or situations and that needs a little adjustment to get back into alignment. On other occasions, my commitments get pretty overwhelming, requiring an adjustment in my schedule. At still others, my physical health requires some attention because I have let myself pack on some pounds again, or backed off on the healthier eating choices. God isn't going to point out stuff that doesn't really matter in the scheme of things. While the attitude adjustment may not seem all that important to you, he knows it is important to me because to continue with that attitude 'out of whack' would mean I might allow bitterness to take root - when that issue roots, the fruit begins to be pretty bitter, as well! God isn't pointing things out just to make us feel 'guilty' or 'ashamed'. He wants only the best for his kids, so he...

"Over every mountain there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley."  Theodore Roethke I have done a fair amount of hiking in my lifetime, but one thing continues to amaze me when I reach some summit point - the look back down the trail by which we ascended to this new height. The 'look back' often shows just how many switchbacks, twists, and turns that path really took. It also often shows us just how much we missed that was right there in front of us, but because of the things that 'bordered' the path, we missed what was just beyond that border. The view from the top is much different than the view while we are traveling the path. At the moment we enter that 'trail head' to explore the path, do we know what the path will hold? Not likely. If we have traveled it before, we are probably a little familiar with it, but even a short period of time and the influence of the elements can change that path. Erosion occurs where rain water...

There are times when I just don't want to listen. I am intent on something else, the plot thickens in a TV drama I am intent on watching, or I am just too tired to care. Listening is hard at times because life gets us involved in other things. Listening is really a two-way street. When we aren't listening, we are blocking one side of the street! We must have open ears to hear the message - but we must also ask clarifying questions so as to get the full meaning of what is being shared. That is how God intends for us to be with our spiritual "ears" - listening with the intention of getting the full meaning of what he is sharing. Simpletons only learn the hard way, but the wise learn by listening. (Proverbs 21:11) There is a clear difference between being a "simpleton" and being a wise learner. We rarely use the word "simpleton" anymore in our English language. In fact, I cannot remember hearing it used in very many situations in my entire lifetime....

Remember the old Ricky Nelson song, "I Will Follow You"? The song started out with the words, " I will follow you, follow you wherever you may go, there isn't an ocean too deep, a mountain so high it can keep me away ." I know this song was talking about someone's "true love", but the words just stuck me this morning - I will follow you...wherever you may go. Those are powerful words - especially when they are spoken to Jesus in sincerity. The idea is that we will follow - even when things seem a little harder than usual, or when the path seems a little 'foggy' at times. We will follow - no matter what. Why? We love him and our heart sings just as Ricky used to sing, " I love you, I love you, I love you !" You’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. You’re blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him. That’s right – you don’t go off on your own; you walk straight a...

Have you ever been lost? There have been times when I am heading to a particular destination along an interstate or back road somewhere and find I am all 'turned around' in my way-finding. I missed some sign somewhere along the way, or just plain didn't judge the distance correctly. I find myself back-tracking, looking again for the right way to go, or I might just give up on ever finding what I was looking for in the first place because it was just impossible for me to find without help! Much of the time in life we are on some kind of journey. We find ourselves kind of 'lost' sometimes, not because the way wasn't explained to us, or that we hadn't consulted the plan for how we'd get their several times, but because we misread, missed, or just plain didn't acknowledge the signs along the way. You’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God.    You’re blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to fi...

12  Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should. (Psalm 90:12 TLB) "As we should" are pretty powerful words, aren't they? They are also "telling" words, for many of us would probably echo back, "Not as we would", for we have chosen a much different path than the one we "should" have taken! Emerson told us, " Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail ." Too many times we have followed his advice and found ourselves blazing a new trail that perhaps we'd have been much better off to have never explored! Someone once said that choosing a path means we abandon some other path - I think the rest of the saying implies that the abandoning of one may mean it is abandoned forever.  We all have many choices of the paths we take each and every day. The paths may be well-worn by us by now, requiring us some effort to abandon because the groo...

I am the Lord, who opened a way through the waters, making a path right through the sea. But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I’m going to do! For I’m going to do a brand-new thing. See, I have already begun! Don’t you see it? I will make a road through the wilderness of the world for my people to go home, and create rivers for them in the desert! ( Isaiah 43:16, 18-19   TLB ) Is it possible God is saying to you that he is creating a brand new thing in your life - opening a road through the wilderness in some area of your life that has never been explored before? We so often start our new year with resolutions - wouldn't it be awesome to start it with revelations instead! God revealing new paths - opening us up to new possibilities - that sounds pretty awesome to me! There are definitely times we hold onto the past "good stuff" thinking we cannot move on from there because if we do, we might just "lose" some of that "good stuff". Re...

Faith makes all things possible... love makes all things easy. ( Dwight L. Moody)  What we label as impossible is not seen the same way by God. What we label as possible may also not be seen quite the same by God! It is important to get God's perspective on each move we make - because we don't want to be ahead of his timing, outside of his plans, or apart from his presence to guide us through! 6 For the Lord watches over all the plans and paths of godly men, but the paths of the godless lead to doom . (Psalm 1:6 TLB) We want to be on a path that is leading us somewhere in which we actually realize some benefit from exploring. We don't want to just spin our wheels or "travel" for the sake of traveling. I remember our Sunday afternoon drives as a kid - a tradition dad established early in life and one which continued well into my teenage years. We'd set out, but dad always had a destination in mind - even though we didn't always know what it was. ...

Later, in one of his talks, Jesus said to the people, “I am the Light of the world. So if you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, for living light will flood your path.”   ( John 8:12   TLB ) I usually do pretty well navigating someplace I am quite familiar with, even when the light has faded and I am faced with total darkness - I just traverse that space a little slower than usual and with a whole lot more caution. Why? Darkness doesn't allow things to reveal themselves to us in quite the same way as light does - they get revealed, just with a whole lot of stumbling! At night, I often navigate mom back to bed several times, not turning on any lights. I act as her navigator - she follows my lead. With her macular degeneration, even when the lights are on, she still has a whole lot of darkness to overcome, especially with the advancing of dementia on top of the blindness. So, as long as she is following someone, she does pretty well. Some of us would do...

I know Louis L'Amour was not really trying to wax philosophical when he said a good beginning make a good end, but he hit the nail on the head! The roughest beginnings can make for a very bumpy ride alone the way. The easiest beginnings can help us to get along the trail a little quicker, but the trail always has its own twists and turns, making the journey sometimes a little tougher than we first suspected it would be! God’s way is perfect. The Lord’s promise always proves to be true. He protects those who trust in him. There is no God except the Lord. There is no Rock except our God. God is the one who gives me strength. He clears the path I need to take. He makes my feet as steady as those of a deer. Even on steep mountains he keeps me from falling. (Psalm 18:30-33 TLB) Despite the beginnings, God's presence can make the journey bearable until it ends! There is no greater beginning than to begin with God - even if the start is a little ro...

"Over every mountain there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley."  (Theodore Roethke) I had the chance to head to a lovely area of the Northern Arizona rim country this past week, enjoying a little R&R with my BFF and some quality time in nature. It always manages to recenter my focus and calm my weary body, despite the strenuous climbs down paths unknown, or long days awaiting those telltale nibbles that let me know there is a fish on the hook! One of my favorite things to do is to just look out over high places on the mountain's edge and see the vastness of the valleys below. While I appreciate the many things seen deeper down into those valleys, such as the lush meadows, abundant wildlife, and tall pines, I always appreciate the perspective one can obtain when one climbs to the top of the mountain for just a little bit of a different vantage point. As Roethke said, the path is there, but sometimes we just need to change our vantage point to see it...