The danger of being even slightly off course

Heading in the general direction of where you want to go is not only disappointing but dangerous.

Mount Rainier is a massive stratovolcano located 54 miles southeast of Seattle in the state of Washington here in the United States. It is a very prominent mountain with a summit elevation of 14,411 feet. It is also considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because of its large amount of glacial ice.

Only 4 paths, each with a very different level of difficulty, lead to the summit. But there are hundreds of paths, heading in the general direction of the peak, that lead to dead ends, cliffs, avalanche prone glaciers, and ultimately…

…a high risk of death!  

Obviously, heading in the general direction of the summit is not good enough. And the real danger is being unaware that you’re off course. Even on a wrong path the terrain looks familiar and you can still see the summit.

Most of us are not heading in the opposite direction of pursuing God to live in His Kingdom and because we are heading in the general direction we are lulled into thinking that we will one day get there, but this may not be the case.

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” ~ Matthew 7:21-23 (NLT)

This is not about getting everything in life perfect because that’s impossible and would negate our need for God’s grace. This is about people who participate in certain godly activities but fail to live fully surrendered to Jesus as Lord.

We can attend church, throw something into the offering, read the Bible and even participate in good activities or projects with other christians – things familiar to us – but that doesn’t mean we’re on course with pursuing God.

The key to avoiding the wrong paths up Mt. Rainier and staying on the right path is consistent interaction with a trained, experienced guide. Our guide through life is Jesus and the indwelling Holy Spirit. Staying on course goes beyond familiar activities to actually doing life daily in consistent interaction with Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

It’s an awareness of their divine presence that we grow into as we interact – asking and listening – through prayer.

The apostle Paul encouraged us to “pray without ceasing“ because he understood that we can live in constant fellowship with God through prayer. He is with us in everywhere, always – as we get ready in the morning, as we drive down the road, as we go about every activity of an ordinary day.

How are you doing at pursuing greater intimacy with the Lord and living in daily fellowship with Him?

© Richard Alvey and iLife Journey, 2012. All rights reserved.

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Sam and Valerie’s big adventure

A week ago last Tuesday, Sam – our Marine – took off with Valerie and Aaron for San Diego. After completing his second phase of training they were finally able to settle in together as a family. Once they completed the 2200 mile drive!

This was the first time either of them had driven that far let alone with a baby on board and a trailer in tow. Sam was careful with his preparations, we got road advice from my brother Bob regarding the mountains in New Mexico and I covered as much “trip/towing advice” as I could think of.

Whatever obstacles they ran into would be a first for both of them so even though we bathed them in prayer and invited others to do the same, I still had a tremendous urge to be with them. Not that I could have prevented or solved anything but having someone with travel experience is always a plus.

No one knows for sure what this new year holds in store for us. We may have brought existing issues from last year with us but even their outcome is unpredictable. With each new day we are traveling uncharted territory.

But we are not alone!

“If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth…I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.” ~ John 14:15-17, 25-26

Truth is not just some abstract list of beliefs or doctrines. Truth is God’s perspective and will in every situation of life. And no matter what we encounter this day, this week or this year; God’s Spirit is always with us to offer guidance and direction towards living out God’s truth.

Are we asking for and responding to His assistance?

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P.S. – The trip went great! Thanks for the prayers!

A Perfect Mess

Because of God’s mercy, our lives can be a perfect mess—unquestionably tangled and blemished but when surrendered to His grace, transformed into something beautiful. God’s compassionate presence is not an illusive dream but a genuine reality, as described throughout His Word. Psalms in particular reads like a diary of God’s interactions with real people with real problems in need of His gloriously real grace. Regardless of how well or poorly we perform, He is with us. No matter how happy or sad we feel, our heavenly Father won’t walk away. Our Creator-Redeemer is always in our corner; He is absolutely and eternally for us.
~ Excerpted from A Perfect Mess by Lisa Harper

I’ll be honest. When I started this journey of following after Jesus many years ago I had the notion that the farther along I travelled, the more together I’d be. HA! Boy did I have that wrong!

Don’t misunderstand me. I know that I’ve grown and matured along the way. I know that there is much of God’s kingdom life that the Spirit has wired into me and how I do life. I am more like Jesus now than when I started the journey. But my life is not tidy by any stretch of the imagination.

The closer I get to knowing God the more I recognize in Him a blazing holiness that leaves me feeling anything but holy. The reality is that God’s Spirit has made much progress in me over the last 30 years but as I get older I realize I was more broken than what I realized when I initially accepted God’s gift of grace.

While I am surprised by this realization, God is not. He knew the complete mess I was from the very beginning. The depth of my sinful nature is not a shock to Him. And yet He chose to love me and adopt me into His family.

The goal of following Jesus is not a neat and tidy life but increasingly deeper intimacy with the One who lavishes us with grace!