Heart Issues - Crash Course

Well, I did it again.

A situation came up and I jumped in before I asked God what He wanted me to do about it. Not only that, but because of other things that were going on at the same time, as soon as I saw something that was out of the ordinary, I immediately "assumed" that the two problems were somehow related. (I’m sure you know where this one is headed.) I focused on my paradigm, drew the wrong conclusion and made a real fool of myself.

Wait! It gets better. Well, actually it gets worse. It played out like a car wreck. I shifted my emotional gears into "high" and I proceeded to run smack-dab into two innocent people – a real head-on collision.

Oh, I know we’ve all done it. But, because my desire is to please God, He doesn’t allow me to just walk away from the "crash" scene. He makes me take responsibility. Man o’ man. Does that ever hurt sometimes – even more than any injury I might have sustained in the crash itself. Not only did I need to go to God to ask His forgiveness, but He let me know, in no uncertain terms, that I was to go to the two people I had hurt and ask their forgiveness as well.

I suppose I wasn’t quite as nervous about the one. We have known each other for some time and she has seen me at some of my worse moments. However, I didn’t know the other lady at all! She was simply the "faceless voice" on the other end of the phone. (Isn’t it sad how it is easier to talk that way when you can’t see someone?)

I don’t know about you, but pride is hard to swallow and it has a horrible taste. But when God says "Go," I go. Sometimes dragging, but I go.

See, the thing about swallowed pride is this: it’s not fun, especially when it’s going down. But – here’s the tricky part – while I always feel better after I have said I’m sorry, I can’t get all the feathers back in the pillow. (You know the story: The woman who gossiped all the time was taken up to the church tower, given a pillow full of feathers, and told to release the feathers into the air. She may be sorry for what she said about someone, but she will never be able to pick up all the feathers she tossed. She can never possibly find them all. No matter how sorry she is, there will still be "feathers" flying around town.)

That’s me when I get myself into these situations. I was truly sorry that I was less than Christ-like in my dealings with these two women. They may both forgive me, which will make me feel better. BUT, I can not undo the harm I did to my testimony. If it is true, that I am the only Jesus that some people will see in their lifetime – then I just gave them a false picture of what God is all about.

Did God forgive me? Of course. His Word promises me in 1 John 1:9 that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." The thing is, though, I don’t want to go through life causing accidents, and then having to make repairs. It’s like having car insurance. It’s great to have, but I would much rather not have an accident at all.

Now, I’m going to say something that I hope you won’t take as sacrilegious, because I absolutely don’t mean it that way. But I’m just so thankful that Jesus volunteered to be my "test dummy." I’m sure you’ve seen the TV commercials where the test dummies are strapped into the cars, then rammed into the brick wall while going super speeds. That’s what Jesus did for me – and you. He took the "impact" so I wouldn’t have to. He gave me His Word – to act as my seat belt, crash helmet, and air bag. But, just like I need to take the time to buckle up or the seat belt won't protect me, I need to take the time to be in His Word.

I’m not going to say I’ll never have another wreck, but I do know that the more I’m in God's Word, the less likely I am to hurt myself and others. So now, if you’ll excuse me, I'm going to go spend some time with my "driving instructor"

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