Yesterday, as we began our series, the TRANSMISSION OF LIFE, we started in the most common gear...the gear most often used and where the vehicle that you drive, spends most of its time...P ark!
We were able to surmise that P is a great place to come to know God and, as we spend our time in a quiet place, we are able to consider His Wondrous AWESOMENESS as the LORD and the CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE....remember, it is very hard to build our relationship with the Lord if we are constantly in a state of Tasmanian fervor...So today, let's move down the gear shift knob to the next letter on the console that finally gets us moving, the R everse!
Now, you might be asking yourself how does R fit into the transmission of life? I mean, do we really want to be backing up? After all, it seems like all the self-help and motivational books you might read tell you mostly one thing....LIFE IS ALWAYS BETTER WHEN YOU ARE MOVING FORWARD!
But what does God's Word have to say about backing up...well, for one thing, it tells us that when we have wronged someone in anger to do as the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:26-28, Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Sounds like reverse at work to me, as we back up from our sinful behavior, we ask for the other person's forgiveness and chart a new way to move forward.
Now, I don't know about your first car, but I had a 1957 Chevy BelAire with an automatic transmission as my first really COOOLLLL car! Unfortunately, the transmission began to slip, and the first gear to give me trouble...you guessed it, REVERSE. So for about a month, before I traded it for a new 1966 Nova SS, I had to be careful where I parked. After all, that car weighed around 3600 pounds and there was no way for me to push it backwards on my own. In fact, one day at school, I pulled into a parking space that definitely pointed a little downhill...and when school let out, I could not go home until I found 6 guys, hanging around in the parking lot, to push it backwards; then I put it in Drive and started home....I could still hear their laughter, even as I revved the engine and left the parking lot.
But here's another reason that Reverse is such an important gear....we all make personal mistakes and our personal mistakes do one of three things...they harm someone else, who did not deserve to be harmed; they harm us, and many times we get more than we bargained for; or they harm both us and the other party...often this happens when we allow ourselves to be caught in a bad or unfavorable situations and we suffer the consequences; but if we are fortunate and in tune and communication with the Holy Spirit, we can remove ourselves from the impending harm by using the R in the Transmission of Life and getting away from a place we do not belong....and God willing, disaster is avoided or at least the consequences are somewhat mitigated and we remain mostly unscathed.
I take the example of the man of God known as Samson to illustrate what could have been the proper use of the R gear. For many years, as a Nazirite, Samson had served the God of Israel as one of their judges; and on many occasions, he smote the Philistines and killed them as the enemy of God's people; however, when his love for Delilah overcame his love for God, he told her the secret of his God-given strength ....and she took advantage of him while he slept and had his head shaved...THEN GONE WAS THE POWER GIVEN TO HIM TO PROTECT THE CHOSEN PEOPLE OF GOD. If only Samson had chosen to use the power of the R in his life, perhaps his capture, the gouging of his eyes into darkness, and his subsequent sacrificial death, could have been averted, and his years of service to God and His people could have had a happier ending.
Yes, the gear known as R is in the Transmission of Life for one very important reason. We may never find ourselves in an intractable situation; but isn't it good to know that God has provided a way for us to reverse and back away from our predicament as we lean into Him and the Holy Spirit; thus moving us backwards, away from the edge of the cliff, and allowing Him to change who we are, what we are doing and the direction we are heading....all for our own good and for HIS GLORY!!!
So press on for the Lord; but remember this, there's nothing wrong, when following God's will that says, YOU CAN'T BACK UP IN ORDER TO GET A RUNNING START INTO BECOMING THE MAN OR WOMAN OF GOD THAT HE HAS ALREADY PREPARED YOU TO BE.....So, join me tomorrow and let's look at the N .....the season of life that happens to us ALL!!!
Using R as God Directs....Making a U TURN when necessary,
WPQ
Poem for the day....
Isn't always easy to do...
Sometimes we need to contemplate,
IS IT TIME TO MAKE A...U?
In prayer, we talk.....converse!
So that we will understand,
When it's time to use REVERSE!
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