Monday, August 15, 2011

~Ruts~



~Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.  Let your moderation be known unto all men.  The Lord is at hand.  Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  And the peace of  God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.  ~Philippians 4:4-8~

Have you ever traveled down a muddy, deeply rutted road, that you had to go down?  How about being in  a car that coughs & sputters and is the only vehicle you have to travel down that old muddy, rutted road?  You are going down the road and climb the the first hill, and then your car stalls out at the top.  So you start the engine up again, and you jerk through one mudhole, and revved the motor and choke through another one.  As you get through that one, you view the worst spot ahead of you with its deep ruts, and you knew if you didn't get through that place the first try, that you would for sure be stuck.

So you stopped.  Then you pray for safe passage through that muddy, deep rutted road.  And as you go through it, you are amazed, humbled and deeply grateful as the car's coughing stopped and you slid through the ruts to the better road.

How much like our lives is that experience?  The mudholes in our minds, thoughts that are deep ruts that we slide into and get so high-centered on----fears of all kinds, selfishness, unbelief, what about guilty feelings and doubts?  How often do we try to make it on our own in our strength, by coughing, jerking, stalling and getting nowhere at all.  We then reach the end of ourselves and reach beyond ourselves to our Strength, our Strong Tower, greater than ourselves.


How amazed, humbled, and so deeply grateful we are as we feel God's strength and leave the mudholes and ruts of depressing thoughts to come out victorious on the other side!!