Reluctant Retiree

I know that I am not the only person to get lost while driving to my destination. Sometimes it is a matter of having misunderstood the directions. But most of the time, it is because I failed to follow the directions, even when the GPS voice is telling me where to go. Even though I have plenty of signs and instructions I can get lost.

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes do the same thing when making life choices. God’s Word gives me the directions, but I either misunderstand the instructions or simply ignore them. Just like driving the car and not following the directions, not understanding and following God’s instructions leads to disastrous consequences.

Isaiah 55:6-7 says, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” Going our own way and trusting in ourselves is equivalent to rejecting God’s directions. To get on the righteous path, we need to forsake our thoughts and trust in God’s directions. He does not move away from us but we move away from Him by going our own way. If we forsake our self-centered ways, God promises to give us compassion and abundant pardon.

Why not find your way home to forgiveness by leaving your old ways behind and seeking to follow God’s ways? Don’t ignore the signs and warnings that God is giving you.

Think about your classroom days, including university classrooms. As you look around the class, you will find some students listening carefully and others having difficulty paying attention. Generally the good listeners got good grades and succeeded, but the poor listeners did not.

Life can be like the classroom. Most of the time life is teaching us some lesson. We mature and gain wisdom when we listen carefully to the lesson and apply truth to our lives. If we fail to learn from life’s lessons, we will surely suffer unwanted consequences as we are doomed to repeat our failures.

Luke 8:18 says, “Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.” We must listen carefully and apply wisdom and truth to our lives. If we listen to the wisdom of God’s Word, trusted advisors, godly mentors, and the Holy Spirit, then we will mature into godly men and women who bear much fruit. But if we don’t listen carefully to such wisdom and truth, even what we think we know will be fruitless and of no benefit.

Jesus told the story of a man with two sons. The man asked both sons to go and work in his fields. One son told his father that he would go and work, but he did not do either. The other son said that he would not go, but did go into the fields and worked. Jesus asked his listeners who had obeyed. As you would expect, the people all said that the second son obeyed by going to the fields and working.

Many people say that they are religious. They point to their church attendance and observance of religious festivals. God has a much higher standard for those who seek to know Him and walk with Him. Joshua 24:14 says, “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness.” A real relationship with God requires a heart of worship, along with sincere and faithful service. Lip service and infrequent attention to our faith does not make us religious. Our relationship with God needs the same focused attention and devotion, and more, that we would give our most valuable relationships. If we claim to know God and have received His many blessings, we will give Him our sincere and faithful worship and service.

However, we cannot offer sincere and faithful service to God until we have come to know Him. And we will not know Him until we trust Him with our lives. This begins with acknowledging our sinfulness and need for His forgiveness. Then we can ask Him to come into our lives and change us by the power of His Spirit. Then we are in a place where we can come into His presence with sincerity and faithfulness.

What radical changes have you made that changed your life completely and forever? When we move out of our parent’s house for school or work, living on our own changes our priorities and the things we do each day. Getting married and having children alters our priorities and how we spend our time. Perhaps changing jobs has modified your lifestyle and dreams. Unfortunately, health setbacks change our expectations and abilities to do certain things.

The point is that we all face life altering events and make certain changes, whether by our choice or from those forced upon us. The lives of the first disciples of Jesus Christ were dramatically affected by His presence and call upon their lives.

Luke 5:10-11 records one such call when it says, “And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.’ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.”

After speaking to a crowd of people, Jesus told Simon to go to deep water and cast his fishing net. Simon had fished all night without catching anything, but he did as Jesus said. Simon instantly caught so many fish that he needed help pulling them into his boat. Simon knew that his catch was miraculous and that he was in the presence of God. So he immediately left everything behind to follow Jesus. Jesus is worthy of our complete devotion.

Like Simon, we can, and should, leave everything else behind to follow Him. He can be trusted as He loves us with a steadfast and eternal love. Go ahead, jump out of your boat and follow Jesus. Your life will be radically changed for the good forever.

I love watching track and field. Despite the competition, athletes in this sport seem to share bond that many other sports don’t generate. It is common to observe opposing athletes in congenial conversations with each other. It is also common to watch athletes from one team not only cheer on their teammates, but also encourage athletes from the opposition.

Our grandson participates in track and field for his high school. He throws the discus and shot put, but also runs the 100 meter dash and the relay. He is good in all these events, but usually not the best. He tries very hard, giving his best efforts, but still has a way to go to be the best.

Some of us are doing the same thing when trying to earn God’s favor and salvation. We do all kinds of good things for others. And we perform the acts that we believe would earn us God’s favor. We attend church, do frequent acts of kindness for others, are generous toward perceived needs, and avoid participating in the “major” sins. Unfortunately, all these efforts will fail because we still don’t meet God’s holy standards. Unless we are perfect, we have sinned against God and His justice and righteousness demand punishment.

Fortunately, God has paid the price that justice demands. Titus 3:4-6 says, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.” Notice that our works, even those done in righteousness, do not save us. Only God’s mercy can save us, when He washes and renews us by His Holy Spirit. In His goodness and love, God provided for our salvation through the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus Christ.

Please stop trying to impress God and earn His favor. He offers salvation and eternal love freely through Jesus Christ. Accept His offer today and trust God with your life.