I’ll never forget the Christmas when my mom and I were decorating the Christmas tree. We were just about finished, all it was lacking was the topper. My mom quickly looked around for something close by that she could stand on to get her high enough to put on the topper. She grabbed the closest thing—which happened to be a rocking chair– stood on it, and leaned over to put the topper on the tippy top of the tree…and that’s when it happened. My mom fell smack dab into the Christmas tree, and within seconds the entire tree with all of the ornaments we’d worked so long to put on the tree, tumbled to the ground. Thank God she wasn’t injured, but it sure made a huge mess! We both laughed so hard our stomachs hurt, and it’s a story that lives on to this day as “family legend.” One of the reasons it’s “lived on” is because my mom is so smart and is well known by her family and friends for always taking time to do her best, so her decision to grab a rocking chair to stand on that day was totally out of character for her. I’m sure in the moment when she grabbed the chair she must’ve thought that if she just didn’t lean too far forward on it that it would “do the trick!”
I share this family memory with you not because I’m thinking about Christmas, or because it’s anywhere near that time of year. I share it with you because that story brings home the reality of how critical it is for all of us to stand on a firm and solid foundation. With all the conflicting information that is being shared in the public arena– claims of fake news from seemingly everywhere and everyone— the question arises: What and whom should we believe? What should we believe about the whole Covid-19 situation? About wearing masks? About the ‘true’ death toll? Is quarantining and social distancing vital or unnecessary? I’ve heard various different “truths” from various reputable people and agencies, but since the information can be totally contradictory, who and what should you and I believe?
One of my children is preparing to go to college this fall, and another child next fall. I wonder, “Will they even be engaging in ‘real’ classroom learning or will it be a ‘Zoom University’? Well, that depends on who you ask. If we were to be making decisions about colleges and schools right now based strictly on what these institutions are telling us, we would have a new and different decision every day! Metaphorically speaking, it’d be as if we were living our lives while standing on a rocking chair! If we lean too far forward or lean too far backward, we could crash and make a mess of things; only this time there’d be no belly laughing involved.
I’m always thankful for the gift of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. I’m especially grateful for the promise of God that He will speak to us as His children and lead us; that we can hear His voice; that He knows the end from the beginning; that He knows the truth; that He has a plan for our lives; and that He is the ‘author of our faith’. He’s the potter and we are like clay that He molds as we seek to love, serve & obey Him. If He knows all things, and He is in control and has a plan for our lives, then we can—and always should– seek His wisdom for the decisions we need to make in our lives. If our family did not have our faith, I’m not sure how we would be navigating such big decisions in a time of such great uncertainty.
I thank God for His promise that if we lack wisdom that He will give wisdom to us if we only will ask Him. I don’t know what decisions you have in front of you, but I do know the One Who has all the answers! Ask Him, and He will answer you! And when you ask Him, don’t waver ‘back and forth’ as if you’re on a rocking chair, but ask Him firmly believing that He will indeed answer you—for if you trust in Him, He most assuredly will! If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. James 1:5-6 ESV
Written by Jamie