Where He Leads I Will Follow: What Are You Looking At?

 

The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.  Genesis 6:5-6

 Our verses today share that, at the time of Noah, “every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” Do you think God feels the same way now? If not, what’s different? I’d like to think that humanity has come a long way from this place. We have good people that love God and do good things all over the world, from the Billy Grahams and Luis Palaus to the Sunday school teachers and church janitors. But, if I’m being really honest, there are still evil thoughts and inclinations in my heart all the time.

 I rarely act on them, mind you, but yesterday was an example to me of how, even as a new creation redeemed by Christ, I am definitely NOT perfect. I was grumpy yesterday. Grumpy and crabby and, well, salty. I hadn’t slept well in a couple of nights, I had sat on a plane for like 6 hours, I had found a NEW allergy which resulted in a great deal of discomfort, and led to some of the sleeplessness, and I was dealing with a miserable scalp infection and a migraine to top it all off. I. Was. Crabby. You’d think, “Oh well with all this going on she had a right to be crabby,” but let me fill you in on the rest. I got up Saturday morning and headed to the airport where I was wheeled around by my loving husband, relaxed and ate a lovely breakfast in a well-appointed airport lounge, boarded first on the plane because of my wheelchair where I got to sit in premium economy for the flight and enjoy special snacks and beverages and extra leg room. Then, once in Florida, we got on a convenient, timely shuttle that wasn’t crowded and took us directly to the hotel without multiple stops where our comfortable room was waiting for us and we got to have a delicious dinner right across the street. Then, the next morning, after a hearty breakfast we took a leisurely drive to the port where we were promptly helped and boarded the ship hours before our scheduled time, met with our room being immediately available and then a delicious lunch. There were two stories going on. One in which I was physically miserable and justifiably grumpy, and the other where I was pampered and provided for abundantly. They were both true, and they were both valid. Sadly, for a period of time anyways, I chose to live in the grumpy one. I tried to hide it, putting on a smile and participating in the activities we had going on, but I was downright miserly inside – a Scrooge if you will – and I know it showed through far more than I would have liked to believe. I’m embarrassed and so sorry for my husband and son who had to live with it.

Here’s the Thing: I think we all have a bit of miser active in our hearts, if we’re being entirely honest. Hopefully, most of the time, we keep it at bay, but all the time, God knows it's there. It matters so much what we keep our focus on. Today, let's keep our eyes on God and all the good He's filled our lives with!

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