Wheel of My Life

“Therefore, submit to God.”

    James 4:7 (NKJV)

“If you confess with your mouth

the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart

that God has raised Him from the dead,

you will be saved.”

     Romans 10:9 (NKJV)

As I write this, we’re in the midst of another very heavy snow storm.  It seems appropriate to hear the song “Jesus take the wheel” on the radio, although I’m grateful to be working from home today rather than out driving in the blizzard.  Even in good conditions, I don’t like driving and regularly pray for God’s help to drive safely.  But I need Jesus to take the wheel of my life, not just the steering wheel of my car. 

Because if Jesus is our personal Savior, then we also must confess Him as Lord and submit to His will.  In church last Sunday, the pastor talked about the difference between surrender and submission.  He analogized to a military situation where soldiers who surrender usually do so involuntarily and with an eye towards finding a way of escape to re-gain their freedom. They may surrender on the outside because they have to, but not in their hearts. Submission, on the other hand, is voluntary and involves our heart, soul and mind.

Too often, Christians may refer to Jesus as Lord, but they fight His rule in their lives and rebel by going their own way, pursuing their own will. Have you ever sought the Lord’s help on a big issue but then came up with “Plan B” just in case?  Or committed a decision to God but then took action when you couldn’t wait for (or didn't like) His answer?  Or has Jesus been Lord on Sunday but not the rest of the week?  It's easy to say the right words yet act according to our own agenda.  When we do so, however, we miss out on the great blessing that comes from being fully submitted to Him.

God does not want our halfhearted acquiescence; He desires to be Lord of our lives.  He wants devoted followers who will relinquish our wills, our desires and our plans, who will voluntarily submit to His rule because He knows best.  When you know that God’s promises are true, when you’ve experienced His faithfulness time and again, when you’re sure that He’s worthy of being trusted with everything, then you will come to know His peace.  Then you can let go and experience joy and true rest because He is in control.

Jesus has the wheel of my life.  My prayer is that you too know the blessings of submission to Jesus as Lord.

Thursday Devotional - Relying on Our Understanding

Have you ever made a simple decision based on the information you knew, but later found out it wasn’t the right decision? Maybe you made assumptions that weren’t correct because you didn’t have ALL the information. I did that recently…

Earlier this year I had talks with James about getting his schoolwork done at school instead of goofing off and talking. He’s bright and quick and I knew he had plenty of time allotted to complete it. He eventually stopped bringing home 4 full pages of kindergarten homework! However, he continued to bring home 1 full page of math homework, which frustrated me (especially since he complained about having to do it after he got home). Instead of checking with the teacher, I kept blaming him, knowing it had to be his fault. Later, I found out the teacher intentionally sent home 1 full page of homework each day!!!  

Well, Joshua, too, made a decision relying on his own understanding…

Joshua 9:3-8, 14-15            ³ However, when the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, ⁴ they resorted to a ruse: They went as a delegation whose donkeys were loaded with worn-out sacks and old wineskins, cracked and mended. ⁵ They put worn and patched sandals on their feet and wore old clothes. All the bread of their food supply was dry and moldy. ⁶ Then they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the Israelites, “We have come from a distant country; make a treaty with us.”

⁷ The Israelites said to the Hivites, “But perhaps you live near us, so how can we make a treaty with you?”

⁸ “We are your servants,” they said to Joshua.

But Joshua asked, “Who are you and where do you come from?”

⁹ They answered: “Your servants have come from a very distant country because of the fame of the Lord your God. For we have heard reports of him: all that he did in Egypt… ¹⁴ The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord.¹⁵ Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath.

Joshua wasn’t to make a treaty with people who lived nearby. He knew that, but didn’t realize the Gibeonites were deceiving him. He relied on his own understanding. Like Joshua, we can read and know God’s commands but fail to act on them. We can still fall back on relying on our own understanding instead of praying and asking God for wisdom and direction. It may seem like a no brainer and easy decision, but we’re to go to Him for everything both big and small.

How can you and I remember that each and everyday with all of our decisions?

Alice