Southern Heights Christian Church

By Rick Willis

 

Solomon looked out his upstairs window and wrote down what he observed on the street below…”I noticed among the young men a youth who lacked judgment. He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house, at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in…” (Proverbs 7:6-27)

And so it goes, this story of youthful bravado, enticed by the short-term pleasures of a harlot, disregarding the long-term effects of such action. “Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng. Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death,“ Solomon wrote.

Solomon saw it and recorded it for our warning and instruction. He was made wise by God, but even the great Solomon would eventually fail to yield to such wisdom as his life progressed. His many wives would turn his heart away from God’s ways and it would result in the dividing of family and nation, a consequence of his misdirection. 

That’s what this is about: direction and consequence.

We fight this principle constantly, wanting our bad choices in life to be isolated; but the truth is -decisions and goals (or lack of them) always take us somewhere, because life is connected. Is that somewhere a place we want to go?

Here are some examples of typical decisions we make (think about the resulting consequence):

·         You want to meet and marry a Christian with purpose, but you frequent the bars and

       date anyone who asks and who is attractive, allowing yourself to get emotionally attached.

 

·         You want a great relationship with your spouse, but you clearly make your children

       top priority.

 

·         You want your kids to truly consider commitment to God, following Christ, but you

       skip church services most weekends to do more pleasurable things.

 

·         You want a deep relationship with the Lord, but you rarely crack your Bible and instead

       fill your head with TV, romance novels or video games.

 

·         You want to be financially responsible, a good steward as a Christian, but the desire

       to “keep up with the Jones’” has you going further into dept.

 

·         You want to be fulfilled in ministry and service as a Christ-follower, but you convince yourself that you have no talent and set passively on the sidelines. 

 Some might say that the stumbles and falls in life are necessary, because “experience is the best teacher,” right? Don’t fool yourself, that’s only half the truth. Personal experience can be a brutal teacher, and it eats away your most precious asset – time. Aimlessly depending on your own experience can take you a long way down the wrong path before you discover it and have to back track. Why not rely on the experience of trusted people in your life who have already traveled the road and learned from it? That’s the other half of the truth about experience. 

Solomon was wise, but his wisdom told him to take advantage of other people’s knowledge. “Let the wise listen and add to their learning. And let the discerning get guidance.” (Proverbs 1:5) So don’t just pray for wisdom, pray for people who can help make you wise, then watch for them and utilize them.

Unfortunately our tendency is to charge down the path of least resistance. Carefully analyzing the destination associated with our bad decisions is no fun. Of course such lack of discipline and the overwhelming desire for enjoyment is often part of the problem.

Solomon again: “The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” (Proverbs 17:12)

Who would do such a thing, you ask? All of us, at times. When we eat what we know we’ll regret. When we talk ourselves out of exercising. When we light up that cigarette, or head to the alcohol section of the store over and over. When we lie to our spouse. When we spend money we don’t have. When we click on that porn website. When we work late regularly and neglect family.  Do we think none of this touch’s tomorrow?

Andy Stanley in his book The Principle of the Path says the paths we choose will always determine the destinations we arrive at. It’s such a simple idea, it makes perfect sense, but we neglect it regularly. He says that good intentions aren’t enough. As the old saying goes, “The road (path) to hell is paved with good intentions.” Stanley also says that “but my hearts in the right place” doesn’t help much either. Your heart will not be able to do an end run around the bad choices you consistently make. Eventually we reap what we sow. 

“But I’m already well down this bad path, what do I do now?” you may ask. Don’t delay. Start from where you are. Action is required: cut up that credit card; find new friends; develop that budget; set the alarm on Sunday; make an appointment with your minister, or a counselor; cancel the internet; sell the TV. Jesus said, “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” (Matthew 5:29) This metaphor by Jesus has our principle in mind, I think. Take whatever action is needed to get you back on the path God wants. 

 Then, prepare yourself to be criticized. Possibly by close friends and family. Why? People tend to react when you go against what’s considered “normal” or if they feel guilty for similar conduct themselves. Stanley says our problem is sometimes that we’re not on the needed truth quest, we’re not on the needed God quest; instead we’re on a happiness quest. What makes me happy, right now?! Danger lurks. And when friends or family criticize, it’s easy to take their advice, because that puts us back on the happiness trail again. Don’t fall in that trap. 

Even for those who don’t seek “happiness” per say, many follow their heart. Can that be so bad, you ask? Depends on how you define the heart, for one thing. We put a lot of emphasis on the heart, but we need to allow our head to rule. The prophet Jeremiah said, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure, who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) Would you like an example?

“But I’m in love with him!” You’ve just tried to reason with a young lady who wants to marry a guy twice divorced, with a known temper, who can be violent when mad. But oh how he can turn on the charm when he wants to! The girl has allowed her emotions to take control (her heart) and she is blinded by her version of love. If she could just engage her brain and think objectively she would see the danger signs, but that old heart of hers (“who can understand it”) is doing its deceptive work. Should she follow her heart? I don’t think so.

Jesus once said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32) One such truth is that our heart cannot be trusted. If we know this and work around it, using our head, much heartache in life could be avoided and more freedom enjoyed.

As I’ve noted, Solomon himself got off track by following his heart instead of his head (with the knowledge of God’s ways) by marrying many wives from surrounding countries who influenced him toward idolatry. Expressly forbidden by God. This not only affected him personally, but also his family and the entire nation, which would eventually divide after Solomon died. Shows how easy wise people once on the right track can get derailed. Although true, his advice can be so good if we’ll listen. He once said, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5, 6) 

Notice that the heart is involved, but this trust also involves leaning NOT on our own understanding, so that the heart is kept in check. And then it talks about straight paths. Straight paths that lead to good destinations, pleasing to God: indeed, that is our theme. Such paths happen when you look to God for counsel and acknowledge Him “in all your ways.” That means: your dating ways, your marriage ways, your entertainment ways, your morality ways, your financial ways, your worship ways – all ways!

I enjoy the hobby of motorcycle riding. In the safety class I took initially the trainer emphasized something that has repeatedly paid dividends. Your motorcycle will follow the path of your eyes. So, when you are going around a sharp curve that surprises you a bit, don’t look down at the road beneath you and panic; instead focus your eyes on the road ahead. Look toward your destination and your bike will follow. It’s amazing how well this principle works. We steer naturally toward whatever has our attention. So, we need to pay attention to the right things. Attention determines direction, and direction will always determine our destination. This is important!

Attention (to God, mission, priorities)…determines Direction (our choices, steps, tasks)…which determines our Destination (for good or bad, always a result of the other two).

Pick good paths; then stick to them. “We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away…….let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” (Hebrews 2:1; 12:1, 2)

It’s not a complicated formula, but oh how hard it can be to practice. Let’s try. Whether its family, work, church or personal pursuits we can pick paths that lead us to something gory, or paths that honor God and one day lead to glory!

 

 Terry Rhoads, Sr. Minister and Elder;   Joe Friend, Associate Minister