Sober Warning

"Listen, my son, to your father's instruction

and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

They are a garland to grace your head

and a chain to adorn your neck.

My son, if sinful men entice you,

do not give in to them."

Proverbs 1:8-10

We hear many warnings throughout our lives:  Separate darks and lights when washing clothes.  Look both ways before you cross the road.  Wear sunscreen.  

Some advice is vital to life and limb, others are simply meant to preserve the appearance of belongings.  There are some warnings, however, with eternal implications: I'd better heed such counsel.

Stand Firm.  There is much to entice me away from the truth of the Gospel.  Sometimes it's my own flesh that lures me into thinking I need to earn my salvation or that I'm not good enough to come to God.  Other times it's the world that drops little bombs of poison into my consciousness, corrupting the Truth I've been taught.  Then there's my enemy who is constantly at work undermining the grace by which I'm firmly planted in God's family.

To stand firm in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I must not give in to the strong pull of these lies that will sweep me away from the narrow path that leads to life (1 Corinthians 15:58, Colossians 1:21-23).  Instead of buying in to what my flesh, the world and Satan are offering me, I can resist the lies and counter with what I know is true, purposefully reciting the Gospel to myself and using the strength of the Holy Spirit to hang on tight to it's foundation.

I am made righteous by the blood of Jesus, He is always at work continuing the transformation that He started at my birth, and I am secure in my place as a well-loved child by faith in Jesus.  Since God is for me, none of the nonsense I so easily fall prey to has any power against me.  May I always remember that when the night comes.

I am wise to heed the warning to stand firm in a world filled with alternative messages and puzzling crossroads.

Use Discernment.  I've always heard, "If it sounds too good to be true it probably is."  I remember receiving a message from a young prophet which may have fit this adage.  She told me I would have great wealth, adding with a wink that it takes money to do business in this world and operate a successful ministry.  I wanted to believe her words, secretly desiring to be rich, justifying my own desires with the thought that I'd be able to help so many people.

Then I turned toward the truth.  I remembered that God doesn't need money and riches are one of the most dangerous stumbling blocks for those who follow Christ (Matthew 19:23-24).  I can be lured away by the false promises of worldly success and sucked into a superficial world of catering to my fleshly desires.  God doesn't need money and He is not hampered by my weaknesses, including a lack of resources.  He is powerful enough to accomplish His work despite my anemic bank account.  My Father owns the cattle on a thousand hills making me one rich princess (Psalm 50:10)!

I am wise to heed the warning to use discernment when listening to messages that sound good to my itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

Keep Eyes Forward.  When I was preparing for bodybuilding competitions, I went through grueling training.  As I got closer to the competitions I'd work out twice a day, getting up well before dawn to get in a good hour of running before hitting the weights, only to return again that afternoon for another session of cardio and some lifting.  In order to persevere through such a training regimen, I would often tell myself that my competitors were probably sleeping while I was pounding the pavement, or I'd remind myself of the benefits of such sacrifices, or I'd visualize myself on stage with muscles popping and skin glowing.  I had to keep my focus on the purpose for all the pain and agony in order to have the motivation to carry on.

It's not so different when walking with Jesus.  This life could be thought of boot camp as I learn God's ways, practice His teachings and train myself in the regimen of faith.  Paul encouraged us to train as athletes, keeping our eyes on the prize as motivation to persevere.  While it would be easy to give up and just float along, we are called to run our race to win, striving hard toward the finish line (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).  It is my desire, then, to press on no matter how many times I fall, keeping my eyes trained on Jesus and what He will give me for my faithfulness to Him (Philippians 3:12-14).

I am wise to heed the warning to keep my eyes forward, focused on my heavenly reward for running a good race.

I often hear so many cautions and so much advice that I'm tempted to tune out.  There are some warnings, however, with eternal implications.  I would be wise, then, to stand firm in my faith, to use discernment when listening to messages and to keep my eyes trained on the finish line of my life.  I will never be sorry that I paid attention to these warnings.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can filter out the superfluous and focus on the eternally significant.

When do I lose heart because my focus is on the problems threatening to bring me down?

How can I resolve to stand firm in the truth as I've been taught?