Tag Archives: James

A busy life, no time to rest?

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© Maria Shevchenko | Dreamstime Stock Photos

There is an old saying that idle hands are the Devil’s workshop. While this adage may be true, the Devil also knows that a busy life can be just as effective in keeping our focus away from the things that truly matter. One of the things I enjoy doing is hiking in the many state and national parks within the tri-state area. When I first began taking hikes, I would notice there were benches along some of the main hiking paths. Each park had them. Occasionally, I would pass by people sitting at the benches as if to take a break from the rigors of the hiking trail. It seemed that on some of the trails, the benches were roughly a quarter-mile apart while others had no rhyme or reason for their frequency. Inside I laughed; it was a hiking path and anyone needing to sit and rest that often surely didn’t need to be on the path to begin with.

One afternoon, as I was hiking along one of the longer trails in Giant City State Park in southern Illinois, I walked past one of the benches when an older couple called out to me and asked me to take their picture as they sat together on the bench. After taking their picture and returning the camera, the old man told me there was a tradition that he and his wife had started long ago – when they were on a hiking trail that had benches, they would sit for at least five minutes on the bench to see why the park felt it was so important to have a bench right in that spot. I asked him if he and his wife had learned something from doing it, not really expecting the answer she gave me: “Some of the benches were there to enjoy the scenery and some benches were there to rest before you proceeded to what awaited you up the trail.” He added that the benches were there to “make sure we aren’t so busy with the hiking that we forget what else is along the trail…” I no longer see those benches along the trail the same way.

God gives benches for a reason

That lesson is one that I often forget and need to be reminded of time and again. It is easy with everything that I feel needs to be done to get so busy that I forget to enjoy God’s blessings the way and when he intended for me to enjoy them. We often read the verse written by the apostle James, Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away (James 4:14) and we correctly apply it to the condition of our immortal soul; however, there are other applications. Even David, considered a man after God’s own heart, wrote, For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth (Psalms 102:3) as a testimony that time waits for no one. When we become so busy that we put off enjoying the blessings of the Lord because we simply don’t have the time, we are actually forsaking the blessings of the Lord.

It is easy when we are busy to bypass the benches God provides for us. Just as those state parks had some benches just so that visitors could rest before tackling the trail that was ahead, God gives us benches where He wants us to stop, rest, and prepare for what lies ahead of us. I think of what the Lord told Moses during the exodus from Egypt: And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest (Exodus 33:14). God knew that Moses, with all the trials he would face, would need physical, emotional, and spiritual rest. God knows that about us as well. He knows what awaits us just as He knew what awaited Moses. He wants to go along with us and even provides us with opportunities for true and satisfying rest. Just as with anything else the Lord provides for us, we must accept the rest He offers and not focus on how busy we must stay to get everything done. In fact, the Lord even provided a day of rest each week: Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings (Leviticus 23:3). I will be the first to admit it is hard to take a day to just do nothing especially when there is so much to be done. It is easy to get busy with a whole host of leisure activities on Sunday and still not be able to get the rest we need.

Just as with the hiking trails, the second reason God gives us benches is so we can appreciate what He has done for us – in other words, to enjoy life’s scenery. Nothing lifts the soul more than seeing God’s love and compassion given us when we are weary. David knew this feeling quite well and was led by the Holy Spirit to write, Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth (Psalms 46:10). Think back to a time when you were forced to rest and then, amid your frustrations, you were able to see something that reassured you that God does still care. Sometimes that scenery are the people in our lives that simply love us unconditionally and are there for us. Sometimes its a simple pleasure, like seeing the beauty of nature, or listening to the chirping of cardinals on a spring day that serves to remind us that God is still there. When we are busy walking the trail it is easy to forget to look at the scenery.

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Do not feed the alligators

do not feed alligators“Do not feed the alligators” is not exactly a sign that one expects to see on lands owned and operated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). However, if you are visiting the John C. Stennis Space Center located in Mississippi and Louisiana on the Gulf Coast, it is a sign that’s visible at the main tourist area. The sign says just what it means – do not feed the alligators. The sign states that alligators that are fed actually become dangerous to humans and must be destroyed to keep the area safe. The simple message of this sign has some profound teachings; do not feed the alligators!

Do not feed the alligators

An alligator is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as either of two crocodilians (Alligator mississippiensis of the southeastern United States and A. sinensis of China) having broad heads not tapering to the snout and a special pocket in the upper jaw for reception of the enlarged lower fourth tooth. Living in Louisiana from 1993 to about 2000, I became familiar with these animals especially as I travelled along the Louisiana coast visiting historical sites. While touring the Chalmette Battlefield, a person with the state’s Fish and Wildlife Service told our group of tourists that in the water, alligators had been known to take down cattle and even men. She even went into how by feeding the alligators, we actually can encourage them to see us as a source of food and they will lose all natural fear that most animals hold towards humankind. Just as the sign at the NASA center stated, she also told us “do not feed the alligators!”

For most people, when they think of an alligator, they think of the viciousness of their attacks and their strong jaws and sharp teeth. Alligators are strong animals that are not meant to be fooled around with. Each of us actually has some spiritual alligators we deal with frequently. If we are honest with ourselves, these alligators are the temptations that really appeal to our flesh and more often than we’d like, we actually yield to those sins. The apostle John warns us when we fail to admit we still keep that fleshly nature to sin: If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8). In order for us to avoid feeding the alligators we must admit the alligators are present and near us. Just as NASA didn’t post this warning sign in the middle of the parking lot but near where alligators are often seen, we must be aware of where our alligators are and make sure we don’t feed them. Even the apostle James warns us to be aware of these temptations in our life and to understand that we all are tempted and no one is exempt:  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (James 1:14-15).

My pastor has a saying that Christians have two natures – a fleshly nature and a godly nature and the one that’s the strongest is the one you feed the most. There is a lot of wisdom behind that statement. Jesus warned His disciples as they could not resist sleeping when they were asked to pray: Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41). Jesus was warning his disciples not to feed the alligators in their lives. Each of us have fleshly temptations that we have to fight each day. Jesus offered the advice to watch and pray – to be aware of those sins. Elsewhere in the Bible we are told to avoid them: Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away (Proverbs 4:14-15); and to pray to be delivered from the temptations: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen (Matthew 6:13). In other words, do not feed the alligators!

What are the spiritual alligators?

If you’re unsure of what a spiritual alligator is, it is the sin that we struggle with on a daily basis. I will be the first to tell you that it is difficult to admit that I, as a Christian struggle with temptations and sins on a daily basis. Since 2006, I have learned what those temptations are and I’ve learned that when I am faced with them I must call upon the Lord and I must avoid creating an opportunity for myself to yield to that temptation. I cannot yield to those temptations and sin – feed the alligators – and expect the Lord to be pleased with me and to be able to enjoy sweet fellowship with Him. There something else about the spiritual alligators – when we do feed them they come back. Not only do they come back, but they come back even hungrier and more determined to cause us to yield to them. When we feed these spiritual alligators, we begin to feel guilt towards actually yielding to the temptation. If we do not immediately repent and turn from our sin, we begin to distance ourselves from the Lord. I know in my own life when I have fed the spiritual alligators it has always affected my prayer life, church attendance, and even my daily Bible reading. I even find it difficult and uncomfortable to fellowship with other Christians until I have confessed my sins and have asked the Lord to forgive me.

Sunrise – each day is a new beginning

sunriseSunrises are something that many of us simply take for granted as we go about our daily tasks. This morning, as a part of my morning routine, I happened to look out the front door about the time the sun was rising above the rooftops in my neighborhood. Within that moment, I was taken in by the deep hues of color, the splashes of golden sunlight, and the contrast of the dark and empty tree trunks stretching to catch the sun’s light and warmth. I pulled out my phone and took the picture to the left to capture the beauty and majesty of the moment.  It began to remind me of God’s mercy and grace and how the Bible tells us, This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness (Lamentations 3:21-23).

Sunrise – Each new day is a gift

One of the repeated teachings of both the Old and New Testaments is that there is no promise for tomorrow. Even Jesus used a parable to teach this very thing: And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? (Luke 12:15-20). This man thought he had tomorrow and even made great plans for his future. This man didn’t know that he only had today and that today was his last day. Even the apostle James wrote on this very concept: Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away (James 4:13-14).

It is not that these verses are discouraging us from planning for our future; the apostle Paul wrote, But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel (1 Timothy 5:8) and the Old Testament teaches A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just (Proverbs 13:22). However, what the Lord is discouraging us from doing is investing so much of our time planning for tomorrow that we forget about what we have today. We all know people who were in pursuit of their future that they really missed out on the blessings that God had given them; this is not just something that the lost deals with, but something that affects Christians as well. In fact, this very topic is exposed even in both Christian and secular music; Casting Crowns, a popular contemporary Christian group sings about this in their song, American Dream. A secular and very popular song in the mid 1970s, Cat’s in the Cradle by Harry Chapin, focuses how our children will adopt our attitudes towards family, work, and their future. Both songs focus on the reality that there have been scores of people who have lost the most precious gift – today – trying to live for tomorrow.

Each sunrise is a new beginning

I know I already shared this verse above, but I believe it is worth repeating:  This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness (Lamentations 3:21-23). It doesn’t matter how bad yesterday was; today is a new day. Yesterday can’t be helped or changed. Each morning we are given a new opportunity and God gives us new mercies and blessings. If you’re lost, never trusted the Lord as your personal savior, He has given you this day to come to Him and to accept the gift of eternal life He offers. If you’re one of His, today is another opportunity to serve Him in love. It is also another opportunity to focus on the things that matters, such as our family and friends. No matter what happened yesterday, today does not have to follow in the footsteps of yesterday’s sins, heartaches, disappointments, and hurts. Even the scriptures about the return, Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh (Matthew 24:40-44) teach that His coming could happen at any moment. This is another clear sign that we are to live each day – each moment – as it could be our last.

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