I call my wife Jane Jetson when I see her talk to the watch on her wrist.
Our electronics have advanced quicker than a nanosecond. Yoda would say, “Progressive we have become.” We want the new. What about mankind, or the man or woman who holds those savvy devices? Are we more modern? Has human nature improved?
Oprah says, “When you know better, you do better.” James, the brother of Jesus said, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins” (James 4:17). C.S. Lewis was an atheist before God changed him. Most know him through the movie series, Chronicles of Narnia.
In the 1952 classic, Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis wrote: "We all want progress. But progress means getting nearer to the place where you want to be. And if you have taken a wrong turning, then to go forward does not get you any nearer. If you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man.”
Lewis’ wisdom still speaks from the grave. Instead of a taking a quicker route through our issues or junk, maybe we need to stop and turn around. The word repent is an ancient word. In modern lingo, it means to make a 180-degree turn. That’s how we progress spiritually.
The prophet Jeremiah, known for his moodiness, offers decisive advice: “This is what the Lord says: Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.”
January shouldn’t be the only month we take a hard look at ourselves to see where our soul lives. Sometimes, we avoid going where we see. We attend church and put on our church face, but afterward return to our old selves. We never bridge the truth we have heard into our personal lives.
Make up your mind to listen to the right voice and act on it.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)
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Nelson Haynes spent fifteen years in full-time youth ministry before entering nineteen years of managing long-term disability insurance. He has a Masters in Christian Education (M.A.) from Dallas Theological Seminary. He loves dating his wife and spending time with his two daughters and one son in-law. He follows the adventures of his two Labrador Retrievers, Bentley and Sadie. His secondary hobbies, besides writing, are riding his mountain bike and painting watercolors. You can read his weekly creative meditations on his writer’s blog at www.nelsonhaynes500words.com.