Roads to Trouble

Read: Leviticus 28 & Psalm 35-36

“Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart…” Psalms 36:1

Examine:

The scriptures often speak of our choices taking the form of roads or paths. Every choice leads to a destination. A wise man understands this and examines the words being spoken to his heart.

Apply:

There are four roads in this passage that will lead to trouble. The first is loosing fear of God. Fear of God is a deep sense of respect and awe. For me I normally loose this in the form of doubt. I can’t respect God fully if I doubt His existence, His goodness or His willingness to come through. Fear and doubt creep in slowly and then speak their words deep in my heart. It makes me unstable and opens me up to all sorts of temptation.

Denial and arrogance come together and form the second road to trouble. Having a false sense of self is trouble. The scriptures teach that I should not have a higher opinion of myself than I ought to. It does not say I should not have a high opinion of myself, it says I should not have an opinion that is too high. For me this is a reminder that a negative and self-depreciating image of self is only arrogance in disguise. I should not flatter myself nor should I tear myself down. Both of these forms of arrogance take my eyes off of God and focus the attention on myself.

Loose lips cut the third road to trouble. Actually, loose lips are the queen mother of all roads to trouble. There is no more clear an indication of my heart’s condition than the words that come out of my mouth. The Bible says that I will be held accountable for every loose word that I speak. I should weigh them carefully, examine them closely, and consider them wisely.

The final road to trouble is the most lethal. Verse four of this Psalm says, “He plots trouble while on his bed; he sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not reject evil.” The thoughts I allow to linger in my mind represent the most dangerous and most destructive road to trouble. In quiet moments I need to pay close attention to the things I consider in my mind but would never act on in person. These thoughts are not harmless. They are the things I consider in my heart and they create a slippery slope.

Pray:

I ask that You reveal Yourself to me in a way today that will secure my fear of You. I do not want to doubt or wonder. I want to know that I know. Teach me today to hold a proper image of myself. Keep me balanced in the truth of who I am in You. Lead me to hold my tongue today and help me be quick to confess the loose words I speak. I pray that You also will strengthen me to take captive all my thoughts today. I desire to dwell on nothing that does not bring You the honor that is Yours.

Wait for the LORD

Read: Leviticus 21-22 & Psalms 27-29

“Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD.” Psalm 27:14

Examine:

To wait on the LORD is to look to Him with dependence and trust, not passivity.

Apply:

The call to wait on the LORD is not an invitation to passivity. Nor is the call to be strong and courageous a license to storm the gates. The call to wait on the LORD is first of all an invitation to learn of God as my defender, protector, and provider. My God is not an abstract concept or philosophy for live. He is alive, active, and absolute. I depend on my own strength, logic, and resources so much that I am often apt to miss out on God. Waiting is not sitting still. Waiting is the gut-wrenching struggle of releasing my expectations, plans, and ambitions to God.

The call to wait on the LORD is second a call to understand the beauty of God. God is captivating. When I stop seeking solutions, benefits, or outcomes and instead focus my energies on discovering His character, majesty, and presence I find a God that is far more captivating than a beach on a summer morning, a mountain rising out of the horizon, or a perfect tee shot that splits the fairway. The beauty of God is an experience unlike any other. Waiting on Him is allowing my heart, mind and soul to be released to be captivated by His glory.

The call to wait on the LORD is finally a call to be submitted to His ways. I can wait on God all day but if I am working against His purposes, living against His ways, or seeking selfish gain I might as well settle in for a disappointing ending. God will never show up and work against His character, will, or ways. My life has to be aligned with His word and my purposes have to be surrendered to Him. Waiting on Him is the daily act of dying to my desires and taking up the ways of the one He sent.

Pray:

The struggle with waiting on You is that it first requires me to follow You into a situation that is bigger than me. Waiting on You demands that I abandon my ways and surrender all to following Yours. This is hard under the best of circumstances, but it is especially hard in light of the broken perceptions I have of You and the twisted theology that I have allowed to set my expectations of You.

Your voice has the power to calm storms, lay mountains low, and shake the heavens and the earth. Your voice also has the power to settle things in my heart, clarify things in my mind, and secure things in my soul. I need Your voice to speak to me today. I need for You to reveal Yourself to me in a way that makes the way I should walk become abundantly clear.

You know me and You know that as best I can from where I am, I have been sitting still and waiting on You. I take courage today in knowing that all I have is released to You, but I also confess that my connection to Your glory, greatness and majesty is not strong enough today. Strengthen my weakness today so that I may stand firm and face the days ahead with courage, persistence, and fulfillment.