I Don’t Want Janky Lines

Sometimes when I sit down to write, something funny from the day will prompt me. Other times I’m caught by surprise when a parallel appears out of nowhere.  Yesterday that’s what happened.

I came home from church and needed to spend some time on the mower. I’m a bit of a stickler about the yard. Even if I’m bushhogging, I want straight lines. That means the first pass must be accurate or everything following will also be skewed. When Dad first put me on a mower, my inclination was to look right in front of the mower. But I learned very quickly that was not a good idea.

Recently, I’ve noticed an unexpected shift around me. Now I always want to step lightly, because I don’t want to come off as sounding judgy. (I’m sorting through life just like the next person.) But it appears that some are making concessions; Christians are trying to make the Church conform to the world. Whether it be dissatisfaction with the worship music, the way the youth program is steering, the delivery of the sermon topics, or any other thing imaginable, I keep hearing statements that sound like compromise. Now I’m fully aware of the unpopular stance I’m taking. But at the end of the day, I’m called to be obedient to God. Period. And sometimes we need to call each other out. Am I right? Anybody?

If your focus is on anything other than Jesus, your lines are gonna be janky. We can’t be distracted by all of the periphery. And we shouldn’t be looking right in front of the mower. Our eyes need to be fixed on Jesus (looking up) just the same as finding a point of reference at the other end of the yard.

When we try to justify things with our own opinion, the end result isn’t pretty. Our standard, our measure, and our thoughts are flawed. Only when we use the Bible (and ultimately Jesus) as our point of reference can we be assured of accuracy.

I’ve been guilty, more times than I care to admit, of seeking out my own wisdom. (I don’t need to tell you what a ridiculous idea that is. LOL!)  I’ve allowed the enemy to distract me and then he sits back and gets a good laugh. Let’s help each other remember: At the end of the day, Jesus has the final word. And if your mowing lines are straight, too, that’s just a bonus.

Ephesians 5:17 ~ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.