I’m Right!
Have you ever felt like you are right about something? You even feel that you are so right you may even argue about it. You might even feel a little ticked off at someone who tries to tell you that you are wrong. I have been there! And it can be so embarrassing when I discover that I was wrong. I thought I knew the facts but I didn’t.
My husband and I just went to MN where most of his family lives to attend a memorial service for his dad who passed away in July. One of his aunts invited us to stay at her house. And since we were flying her granddaughter loaned us her van. It was so wonderful of them to be so giving. It helped us save money.
Parking
Our aunt and her husband drove 2 hours to the airport to bring us the van. They had to drive separate vehicles because we were not going to their house right away. We had another family that lived south of them about 2 hours that we were going to visit first.
Our aunt met us at the luggage area and walked us to where she parked the van they were loaning us. She had written down on a piece of paper the location of the van in the parking garage plus the license plate. She emphasized to us the importance of not losing the key. It is one of those new kinds of keys that don’t even look like a key. The only way to get into the car is by pushing a button.
We finally found the aisle where it was parked and then she walked right to the van. She gave the key to my husband and he went pushed the button to unlock it but it did not work. She told him he needed to be pretty close to get it to work. So he got closer but it still would not work. She could not understand why it was not working. I asked her if she was sure this was the correct van. She told me yes and eventually pulled out the paper that she had written the license plate number on. And sure enough, it was the right van.
She finally took the key and tried herself then called her husband, she told him she could not get the key to work. She was looking for other ideas. Then she decided to try the lock button and when she did she heard a beep. The embarrassing part is that the beep was coming from a van a few cars over. So we were at the wrong van. Now the question is how did she get the wrong license plate written down. She thought about writing down the license plate after she was already part way down the row. She went back to write it down and chose the wrong van. They were very similar. One way she knew it was the wrong van also was the fact when she looked in the window she didn’t see familiar things, like her can of almonds.
Another story
This reminds me of another time I was at a grocery store. I was with my son and we had just gotten out of our vehicle and headed for the store. There was a lady walking from the cars parked on the right of us to go to the other side on the left. She stopped us and said, “I just have to tell someone.” She had come out of the grocery store and went to her car and loaded her groceries into her trunk. She went to get into the vehicle and realized it was not her car. In her case, her keys worked for another car. I don’t believe it was an electronic lock but just the key. When she talked to us she was headed to the cars parked on the left where her car really was. An amazing story! She did it without knowledge until the evidence presented itself.
Christians
This makes me think about the way the devil works. He makes his ways look similar to God’s ways, especially from the outside. It looks like it is safe and won’t harm us in any way. He likes to catch us off guard. And he wins almost every time when our guard is not up. The outside of “the car” looks so similar that if we don’t pay close attention we may not pick God’s ways. We cannot go through life lazily. We have to be a diligent Christian. As it says in Matthew 7:13, 14, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” We have to be alert.
This verse may be discouraging to some. But I know God wants us to know how serious it is to be alert. It is meant to help us realize how easy it is to be lost if we are not alert. But God is the one that does the work in us if we so allow it. Now, this doesn’t mean if I am alert that I will never make a mistake because it is a growing process. But I will be on the correct road journeying with Christ.
Alert
So what can I do to stay alert to the wiles of the devil so that I am not pulled in to his sophistries? He is so good at what he does and we cannot combat him. We cannot battle with him. But we can allow God to battle him for us. Here are some crucial steps for us.
- Prayer. We need to stay in communion with God. We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:19 to pray without ceasing. This is not meaning to be on our knees every hour of the day. It means that our minds need to be so in tune with God that our minds turn to prayer throughout the day as we encounter every circumstance. I have found that if I am intentional about spending time with Christ each morning in prayer, the study of His Word, and memorizing scripture it becomes more of a habit to turn to God in prayer throughout the day.
- Study God’s Word. There is such a need to spend time in God’s Word each day. It is more about quality than quantity. The bottom line, It is not about how many chapters you have read but how much you understand what you have read and can apply it to your life. It is best to take a few verses and walk away with knowledge for the day than read a lot and walk away not even knowing what you read but you did your quota.
- Memorize Scripture. We need to hide God’s Word in our hearts. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalms 119:11). When we are tempted throughout the day we can draw from the scripture that we have placed in our hearts to combat Satan.
It is a heart work and Jesus will do it for us if we give Him consent. He will identify Himself with our thoughts and aims and bring our hearts and minds in line with His will so that when obeying Him we will be carrying out our own impulses. This will only happen as we draw closer to Him and allow Him to work. And we can only get to know Him by spending much time in prayer and study of His Word and hiding it in our hearts.
Dear Father,
I want to recommit my time to You. There is a time and season for everything and I am not good at regulating my time. I can get so distracted and forget what the priorities of life are. Continue to guide me in my journey of drawing closer to You and getting to know You better. I want to be lead by You and to surrender all my ways to You. Thank You for Your love and compassion for me.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
Surrender all to Him today and commit to spending time with Him.
Love you all.
Do you have a memory of being forgetful? I would love to hear your story. And what lesson can you draw from it?