Where Are You Headed?

My husband and I were talking the other night about how the aging process naturally gives you more exercise because of all the trips you make to the other room because when you get there you don't remember why you are there so you leave, only to return later... and the cycle repeats. We don't always remember where we are headed, nor do we remember why! I hear from my younger friends that it is not a phenomenon exclusively reserved for the aging, but busy lives and brain fog are in vogue for all of us, it seems. "Where was I going?" seems to be a frequent thought for many of us.

In Jesus' message to the crowds one day, he spoke about where we should be going... where we will end up when life is over and the judgement comes. He references a group who will greet Him at the pearly gates, call Him LORD and they will not be recognized as His followers. Immediately they list their credentials and all the amazing things they did in His name. Still, it isn't ringing a bell with Jesus. He is only receiving into His Kingdom those who followed His law. Now, one would think that all those acts of service and the healings would get His attention, but nope! He is welcoming those who took the time to know Him enough to realize that what He wants from us is our time and connection to Him, not to our list of accomplishments for Him. He tells them later that the most important thing they can do is to love God with all you heart, soul, mind and strength and the second is like it.... love your neighbor as yourself.

Therefore our trajectory in life, if we hope to be a friend of God, recognized by Him as His child, is not to impress Him with all we can do for Him, but to simply take the time to sit quietly, listening and learning, reading His Word, meeting with Him for our daily assignment rather than rushing out to perform and impress Him with our servant's heart. That is completely contrary to the way our culture does life. The doing comes first and the meditation comes at the end of the day if we have checked everything off our list and can stay awake that long.

For parents, our drive is often for the good of our family. We love our kids and want to provide all we can for them. We want them to have nice things, and experience a variety of activities. We want them to know Jesus, too. But, do we have it in the right order? If you keep following the message of Jesus that day He talks about the value of knowing Him as it relates to building our home. A good. strong, solid foundation is essential for the home to survive. It's difficult to drive the footers into bedrock but, without that reinforcement, the home will collapse. In other words, finding the time to build a foundation upon your relationship with God is not going to be as easy as simply building a sand castle. I have seen some pretty impressive sand castles. The passersby look on in amazement at the time that went into creating these masterpieces. But, the wind and the rain comes and they are gone. Conversely, those homes that are founded on the solid truth that comes only from time spent with Jesus, reading and listening and "being" with Him will withstand the storms of life.

May I simply encourage you to stop and look at the road you are traveling. Is it taking you and your family to the arms of a welcoming Jesus who recognizes them as His kids? Or has your focus been on helping them to be the best dressed or best educated or most athletic or kind or serving or gifted or graceful? Is an eternity with a God they know the destination you are moving toward? Have you taken them to a place in life where they can't even consider making it through a day without genuinely connecting with Him?

If you are NOT on that road, STOP! Don't keep going and hoping that it will circle around eventually. You are going to get further and further from where you want to be. The good new is that U-turns are allowed and detours will bring you back to where you truly want to be, building your home on a foundation of connection with your God.

So, where are you headed?