Don't Go into the Road

The shiny red ball bounces into the road.

Boing, boing, boing. The color captivates us. Right when our eyes catch it, we want it. Even though it's not safe, nothing will stop us from chasing it!

Our Mom and/or Dad, who is holding our hand, may try, but at that moment nothing else matters. . . not the danger of getting run over or the punishment we may receive from our parents.

We let go of their hand and run after it. When we have it in our grasp we are happy, but what if we got hit by a car or what if our Mom or Dad got hit by the car, trying to stop us? Would it have been worth it?

Of course not!

Or what if at the very moment we lunged for the ball, our Mom or Dad jerked us back by our hand, shirt or arm? After all, their job is to protect us. They don't jerk us back because they are trying to punish us, they yank us back because they LOVE us.

And in that moment, it HURTS, physically and emotionally, when we don't get what we want, but it is for our own good!

God's Timing

One of the hardest things to understand is God's timing. See, we live in an instant-gratification country. When we want something, we want it right that very second! We don't want to wait.

It's the same way when we pray for something we want or think we should have. We pray for God's will, but if we really are honest, even IF we do want what God wants for us and not what we want for ourselves, we want our request to be immediately honored.

Yet, His wisdom is infinite. I've said it before-- He not only sees the now, like us, He sees the beginning, the present and the end. This pertains to the big picture and to our lives as well!

I'll get personal. I desperately want to be a husband, want to be a Dad, want to use my talent of writing to realize my dreams and more importantly to bless others through the spoils that come with 'making it' with my pen.

Each one of those is my red ball.

I want mine.

God has said, 'Not yet, my son.'

Why? Because I'm not ready. He is still preparing me. Preparing me to be a loving faithful husband, an attentive Dad and sharpening my skills as a writer.

But they have their's

At 33, I look around and I see SO many people living out the deepest desires of my heart. They're married, they have kids, they do have a lot of money who in-turn can impact many more lives than I can at the moment. They have their red ball!

Worse yet, MANY are bad stewards of it. Talk about confusing, frustrating and something that makes you mad and just want to scream!

That's one of the devils biggest tricks is getting us to focus on what we don't have versus what we do! We look at other people, who possess what we don't, and we are instantly frustrated!

That's where the notion of 'keeping up with the Jones' ' came from. We want to have a flat-screen TV, we want a bigger house, we want a nicer automobile because we see someone else who has it.

You can try to 'keep up' if you so choose, but let me warn you: you will either try so hard in order to obtain it, you will live outside of your means or you will accumulate all the luxuries you've set your eye on only at the end of the day to learn someone has something better, someone who has more or to find, without Jesus in your life, THEY ARE JUST THINGS!

Remember 'Show and Tell?'  How it was all about one-upping? You brought in, or wore, a brand new pair of (Michael) Jordan tennis shoes and everybody thought they were cool until your classmate brought in a Jordan autograph!

It's amazing how as much as things change the more they stay the same. As adults we do the same thing . . . except now it's it's cars, clothes, houses and jobs.

Life isn't about showing and telling, but it is about Show and Tell-- SHOWing people how awesome the Lord is through our love, compassion, kindness and the way we carry ourselves and TELLing them why we do it!

Walking with Dad

In order to capture ANY of them, I must not let go of Dad's (God's) hand.

See, walking with Him is the greatest joy I've ever known! So, while it would be great to achieve those things NOW, I must know there are reasons I don't yet have them.

That's what trust is. It's knowing that NOTHING is more important than not letting go of Dad's hand . . . no matter how wonderful it is!

After all, He sees the cars!! He sees the potential sin, the hurt, the danger of giving us what we want when we want it. . . the disasters that would come from us having our desires too soon!

I ONLY want my red ball IF Dad leads me into the street to get it and even then I won't let go of His hand! I have learned that even dreams realized without God leading me to them can feel like nightmares!

My little brother in Christ Roy Hall (@Roy_Hall on Twitter) gave me the idea for this blog through the Holy Spirit after God had already told me to write about it-- Wow, talk about affirmation!! His message was called, 'Unshakable faith,' which is something we ALL must have if we are going to walk out Matthew 9:37, Hebrews 12:1 and 2nd Cor. 4:7.

Isaiah 26:8 'Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we WAIT for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.'