Guidelines For Living Devotional

A comedian making light of God's instruction to Noah, mimics his response to God's call, saying, "What do you want, God?  I didn't do nuthin'!"  That was supposed to be humor, but it underlines a pretty common belief that God won't bother you if you don't bother Him.  Sadly enough, individuals who prefer to live independently of their Maker live in rebellion against Him and are the real losers, not because of God's wrath but because of the blessings which they are denied.

Nearly 3,000 years ago the psalmist, David, wrote, "I praise Thee because I have been fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous is Thy workmanship as my soul is well aware" (Psalm 139:14).  But just how wonderfully made man really is has come to light only in the past century as science has began to unlock the secrets of the human body.  The human body, according to medical science, contains 37 trillion cells that reproduce themselves every seven years.  Each one of the 37 trillion cells performs 10,000 different chemical functions, according to the late Dr. Ralph Byron of the City of Hope Cancer Clinic, yet all of them just work together to produce a healthy body.

Friend, what are your plans for tomorrow?  You are not sure, right?  Some have is the attitude, "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die!"  If that describes you, the something important is missing in your life--it is hope, hope that tomorrow will hold the answers to the questions and problems that have you baffled today.

The press called it, "Sunday a Hero, Monday a Bum!"  It is the strange story of a man who risked his life one day to save an eleven-year-old boy from certain death, his clothing aflame, while at least fifty people stood by and did nothing.  The next day the same man was charged with burglary.

While there are many ways to fail as a parent, there are also some sure-fire, 100% ways guaranteed to help you succeed.  No, I haven't copyrighted them, but I have certainly tested them.  They work, provided you will put them into practice.

I call them Guidelines for Successful Parenting.

Any college student who has read Albert Camus for a philosophy class understands that Camus was an existentialist, and his brand of existentialism left no room for God.  Flat outright, he was an atheist.

What do you do when you forget that God never sleeps? You stay awake nights, restlessly tossing and turning.  You think a lot, but it's usually negative, unproductive thinking.  You look into the future, but the darkness obscures everything.  The smallest shadow appears to be the reflection of a giant monster.  You see the very worst case scenario.  And you worry, and you worry, and you worry some more.

“Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful.  Honour and recognition in event of success.”  So read the advertisement that the famed explorer, Sir Earnest Shackleton, was said to have posted when seeking a crew for the ill-fated South Pole bound voyage of his ship, the Endurance.  Historians have argued as to whether or not Shackleton really placed the advertisement but what is sure was that bitter, cold, long hours of complete darkness were indeed, the constant companions of the 27 men who ultimately escaped the shipwreck.  Shackleton became a hero for saving the lives of his men by keeping up their spirits through days made up of 17 hours of utter, frigid darkness.

"God if you will just get me out of this mess, I'll…"   Have you ever said those words?  Or possibly it was, "God, let's make a deal…."  It may have been when you were in the military, the shells were exploding, and you wondered whether a bullet had your name on it.  It may have been when your car was skidding down the icy slope, out of control; or when a typhoon came screaming across the South China sea and was headed directly for your island.  It may have been when rebels were about to invade your village, murdering the elderly and children, raping and abusing the women.

When you are in a pit, and it is so dark that the only time rays of sunlight filter into your prison is at high noon, you don't play games with God.  You don't tell him what a nice person you are, or how much you have done for His cause.  You go one-on-one with God, pleading your case, asking Him to intervene for you.