God's GPS--Not Society's

Garmin GPS riderview (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After a fabulous sister-date where we brought my niece to see Santa in July, Janine and I headed back to Malone from the North Pole in Wilmington. Unfortunately, the road home was closed, so we had to rely on my Garmin. It got me lost. My sister took out hers, and we ran them simultaneously.

Remember, we sat in the same vehicle, and we had the same brand of GPS. Both of them took us different directions--all the directions were wrong.

Usually, we could rely on the GPS. On this day, both had faulty data and that data often led us to dead-ends. Ironically, both GPS-es always made us drive into cemeteries--the ultimate dead-ends.

What a metaphor for this world we live in.

We put our faith in something that usually works, but not guaranteed. You all have anecdotal stories about the GPS. We make decisions. Based on those decisions, we make other errors which compound themselves and lead us further astray. We then allow the government to make laws to correct the issue. (We know how well our government works). We repeat the process until we've totally lost our moral compass.

And that's what happens when we base our lives on human knowledge and not on "God's Perfect System" (GPS) found in his Word, the Bible.

No one is born wanting to walk into a school and murder ten people as happened in Umpqua. No one is born in one sex and decides, as a toddler, he's really another. No one wishes to become a prostitute. No one starts out wanting to create babies by five different men and believe it's all okay. No one desires to be an addict.

It starts with one sin at a time. Little "mistakes" that change our course until we are so lost we die in the wilderness.

No experienced hiker walks without a compass. No contractor builds a wall without a level. No pilot flies without an altitude indicator. The end results can be disastrous without them.

"There is a way that appears right, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs 14:12).

We as Christians have to make a stand. We have to stop allowing the laws of the land and the attitudes of society to cow us. The consequences--as the effects of the first freedom riders, the first abolitionists--may not give us the desired result, but we've got to get back onto the moral path and stop the insanity of events like Umpqua  or Charleston or Chatanooga.

Mourning: Better Than Joy: Eccl. 7: 2-4

English: The Bible (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When love came knocking shortly after I got saved, I worried I would make the same mistakes I made when I had married. That relationship proved damaging to who I was as a human, so I prayed that God would shut every door He needed if He did not want me with Harry.

Every door opened. So I let down my guard and allowed myself to love deeply. Then Harry broke off with me, and my world spun out of control. He claimed the cliche: it was him, not me. He wasn't ready for marriage. A week later he began dating a friend of mine.

We all attended the same church, so I had to hold no hard feelings against anyone, but this break-up hurt more than any I had previously--even my marriage.

So new was I at my faith, I understood nothing. I held my Bible in my hands, lifted my voice to God and said, "Lord, they tell me this book holds the key to every problem. If that's true, please open my eyes to Your word."

God answered that prayer abundantly. One thing that has stuck in my brain all these years was Eccl. 7:2-4

 2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart. 3 Sorrow is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart.4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

Why?

• In sorrow, we lean on God. Our joy, we attribute to ourselves.
• In sorrow, we learn of our humanity--both its mortality as well as its dignity
• In sorrow, we learn compassion and humility.
• In sorrow, we know our lives end. If life is transient, we best make the most of it.

I can't say I magically made my pain to pass quickly. But the Word of God opened to me, and I found myself dancing around my apartment with joy uncontainable which mitigate my loss.

How have you found sorrow better than joy?

Ecclesiastes 1:18--Knowledge=Sorrow

Much learning earns you much trouble. The more you know, the more you hurt. Eccl 1:18

This verse confused me. I love knowledge. I believed you can never have too much. But then, I discovered, the hard way, the more you know, the more you realize you don't know. Then you find yourself refusing to get out of bed, refusing to remove the covers from off your head. And people get pretty sick of your moaning.

I know from experience.

 

Naively, I sat down a wrote a book. A wonderful book. One to be esteemed by all mankind. Well, as a humorous women’s fiction, a small fragment of womankind would love it. Crit partners read it, I reviewed it, my daughter loved it. Perfect. So I pitched it at the last writers’ conference.

I found myself with three requests for DWF, one requiring a title change, so I dutifully reviewed my manuscript and discovered, to my horror, that I learned much in the years since I created this masterpiece. The book stunk. After hiding in bed for twenty-four hours, spending the next day in tears, and consulting with others, I dusted off my grief, and re-worked it. Three weeks later, it was ready to be mailed.

I looked at old queries to serve as a cover letter. With good reason, no one wanted to take a chance on this before seeing a I couldn't write a decent query. Using knowledge newly acquired I crafted a letter no agent could refuse--one designed for each specific agent.

Except.

Remember that on title change? My mind no longer saw either of the titles. I perfected my queries, hit send and then realized…in one paragraph I called my work DWF. In another it became On(the)Line.

A year ago I would have shrugged. Said, “No big deal.” But my knowledge has increased, and thus my sorrow. A little mistake like I made, in our competitive field, was huge. And I grieve because another year has gone down the tubes.

Furthermore, I'm reading a book that truly is great. What I sent to the three agents does not compare.

While I grieve and worry my failure, I’m glad the only thing that truly matters is God and our continual striving to be like Him. We can study, stay up late, find the greatest mentors, and there will always be more that arises that shows us just how far short we all have fallen from the glory of God.

Good Grief

Good Grief (Photo credit: Camps)

It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. 3 Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better (Eccl 7:2-3
KJV)

Good Grief. Sadly, despair hits us all, and when it does, we think, "What a stupid term good grief is. How can it be good?" Apparently, God believes this to be true.

Wait a minute, you state (Yes, I know I'm schizoid and you didn't say anything), God wants us blessed. And that is exactly why grief is good. How? Let's consider.

1. Death comes to all of us. When someone we love or know casually dies, we will grieve. Therefore, we learn to not put off until tomorrow the encouragement and love we need to share today.
2. Discouragement plagues us all. We work hard, only to fail. But what happens because of failure? If we do nothing, it defines us. If we work harder, we will produce the good product we desired. J.K. Rawlings is renowned for stunning success after repeated failure. Colonel Sanders had his chicken recipe rejected 1,009 times before someone saw its merit. (http://www.onlinecollege.org/2010/02/16/50-famously-successful-people-who-failed-at-first/)
3. It makes us humble. Think about the braggarts you know, famous or not. Does anyone like them? 
4. It heals us. My Ecclesiastes' scripture clearly states sorrow's healing qualities. What niggles our mind? Where have we failed? If we correct those, the weight the devil heaves at us dissipates and we become truly free in the Lord.

A Sword Shall Pierce Your Heart

“Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too" (Luke 2:34-35)

  Have you ever wondered at some of the hard Scriptures concerning a time we epitomize as pure joy?

  Picture Mary waiting forty-one days of her purification (Lev. 12:4) before bringing her son to the temple. Here Simeon greets her and tells her wonderful news: a sword would pierce her spirit.

  His words proved true. Mary knew sorrow as she watched the life of her son unfold, culminating in his crucifixion. 

  For Jesus, his birth came at a great cost—not just in his brutal death, but He was equal to God and owned the world. Yet he came as a defenseless child dependent on sinful man for His survival.

  Today we sing happy songs and focus on the joyful season. And it is joyful solely because Jesus came to earth to reconcile us with the Father. For that reunion, the heavens rejoiced.

  But as we go about our lives, also realize this is a season of sorrow for many.

  My son-in-law works in a psych ward in Salem Hospital. Christmas time brings a plethora of patients overwhelmed by the emphasis on family when they have none and giving when they have nothing. They worry about debt to buy the elaborate gifts our culture demands and feel guilty because happiness eludes them even though the world rejoices. 

  On top of this loved ones die, siblings become ill, babies are miscarried, children are abused and addictions abound.

  Don’t be dismayed if you don’t feel the joy the world tells us we must feel. Realize that our faith and faithfulness are not pain free. We will be challenged in all things human, even as Christ our Savior was. Like Mary, great blessings will come, but swords will, too.

  Rest in Him through the hard times, and He will give you peace that passes understanding.