Proverbs 4:23-27
Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that's where life starts. Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip. Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Each August, residents up and down Arkansas Highway 64 have a garage sale that lasts several days over one weekend. They call it “Bargains Galore on 64.” One year, my husband and I traveled this highway from Beebe to Conway and took in the sales along that part of the route. My husband drove, and I watched for signs and scouted the sales to determine whether or not it would be worth our time to stop. As the day wore on and the crowds thickened, this became a bit of a risky adventure! Drivers were paying more attention to the sales than their driving. Many either didn’t have a “navigator” to assist them…or that person was busy gawking, too… because there was more than one near-miss collision as we motored along!
I would venture to say you could call these sales something of a “sideshow distraction.” Highway 64 is a relatively busy thoroughfare, particularly as you get closer to the larger communities. Add in some traffic that is stopping and starting – often with little to no warning – and you have a recipe for potential disaster!
This is a good example of how many of us maneuver through life. We are busy gawking at the “sideshow distractions,” and we fail to pay attention to the importance of our main focus… navigating the path of our Christian faith. Daily living is fraught with challenges aplenty without taking detours and becoming preoccupied with such things as other people’s business, temptations, and our selfish desires to fit in or “be somebody!” These behaviors lead to the “white lies,” excuses, gossip, and careless banter that can wreak such havoc with our Christian witness and daily living.
In some respects, God is our “Navigator” as we travel the highways of life. He shows us what distractions and detours are worth our time and trouble… and He frees us to remain focused on the road ahead. He protects us from a collision course. Our job is to make every effort to be a “good driver”… to keep our heart and motives pure… and to listen to His advice.
I love a good yard sale as much as the next person… and I have to admit, I am often easily distracted. But I am asking God to strengthen my focus… to purify my motives – and my thoughts and actions – and to leave evil in the dust. Who is your Navigator these days? Are you a on a smooth stretch of road - or have you made a detour of sorts? Ask God to set you back on the right course… and to give you everything necessary to keep you there!
©2012 Debbie Robus
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