Jump Start # 3925
Psalms 25:12 “Who is the man who fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.”
We were off to the symphony the other day. It was a Rachmaninoff piece that was the feature of the night. The guest conductor started the evening with the national anthem. That doesn’t happen much in the classical world. It caught many by surprise. The audience stood. The lady beside me was singing loudly like an opera singer. The person next to my wife didn’t stand at all. I don’t know if she had trouble getting up and down or if she was protesting. She remain seated.
On the way home, I mentioned to my wife about the person next to her remaining seated during the national anthem. My wife said, “I chose not to notice.” Ouch! She chose not to notice, but I did. And, not only did I notice, but I learned a great lesson on the ride home.
First, life is about choices. One can choose to be negative or one can choose to be upbeat and positive. It’s not what happens to you but what you allow to happen to you on the inside. Some only see problems. Some only see what’s wrong with the country. Some only see what’s wrong in the congregation. Some couldn’t see the sunshine even if it was shinning in their face.
Your faith, outlook, hope and direction in life shape your choices. The greater those things are the better your choices will be. Sometimes we must distinctly remember to forget things. Let go of the hurts.
Second, God has a wonderful way of teaching us through the people in our lives. Our ride home from the concert could have been filled with how ungrateful some people are to live in this country. We could have conjured up all kinds of dark theories about that person who did not stand for the national anthem. Instead, we talked about the wonderful young pianist who preformed and the beautiful Brahms encore that he played.
When you surround yourself with great believers, your life gets richer and richer. Those godly people help you to stay close to the Lord. They remind you of the wonderful blessings we have in the Lord. Be thankful for those in your life who are constantly guiding you ever closer to Jesus. “I chose not to notice,” is a wonderful statement for all of us. How many times during a worship service does our mind get distracted by a crying baby or someone in and out of the auditorium. “Did you see that guy sleeping during the sermon?” I CHOSE NOT TO NOTICE. “Did you see who came in late?” I CHOSE NOT TO NOTICE.
That extends beyond worship. “Did you see the color of that girl’s hair?” I CHOSE NOT TO NOTICE. “Did you see all the tattoos that guy had?” I CHOSE NOT TO NOTICE. Not noticing helps one from being so judgmental. It helps one from being so sour in life.
Third, much too often in life we worry about the other person more than we think about ourselves. We want to straighten out the other guy while we ignore things in our own life. Rather than being so quick to point the radar gun at others, I need to be looking in the mirror at my own life.
That seems to be the issue that the Pharisees had. They were quick to point out what was wrong with everyone else, while never really giving any thought to their own conduct and life. And, it is so easy to slide into those same shoes that the Pharisees wore. Knocking the other guy down doesn’t make us stand any taller. This does not mean that we ignore wrong, close our eyes to error and just tolerate any and every dumb idea that comes along. Not at all. However, finding the wrongs in everyone around me doesn’t make me right. I could be just as wrong as they are. What makes one right is when they are walking with the Lord, obeying the Lord and giving their whole heart to the Lord.
While we can’t clean the world, nor fix the brotherhood, if every person swept in front of his own house, the world would be that much cleaner. What can I do? Where can I improve? How can I step closer to the Lord? Boy, when we start thinking that way, our outlook, our attitude, our choices all begin to change in a better way.
I chose not to notice…that’s a choice I’m working on.
Roger