Proverbs 22:3
A prudent person sees trouble coming and ducks; a simpleton walks in blindly and is clobbered.
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.
Timothy is tall for his age… nearly three feet in height at just 29 months. So when he started learning to walk and run, he would often pass near my piano or sofa table and wince. Sometimes he would actually bump into them, but he would make that “this is gonna hurt” face before he actually made contact. It was as if he knew he should duck or move away, but the circuit to complete that message from brain to body was not yet fully developed.
Even though most of us are a long way past two years of age, we still do this in so many ways. We get ourselves into some pretty big messes, knowing full well that we’re gonna get clobbered… yet we forge ahead anyway. We know we shouldn’t go to a party where there will be drinking and drugs. We understand on many levels the foolishness of speeding and/or drinking when driving. We often know we that we shouldn’t open our mouths and spark World War III. We are totally aware that we “don’t have a dog in the hunt,” but we stick our noses in where they don’t belong, say things that are hurtful or inappropriate… or fail to act when we know we should.
I will be the first to admit that I “open mouth, insert foot” more times than I care to count. I am often impulsive and reactionary. And yes, I often get clobbered! But I’m learning to stop and consult God first… to take a breath… count to ten… say a quick prayer… and let God lead me. Is it easy? Not always. Often I want to say, “But, God…” Yes, I am the “Burger King Christian” sometimes… I want to have things MY way. But I do get that trying to tell God how to run things is nothing short of ridiculous and absurd… and I’m working on this. Are you?
©2011 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment