Pitfalls: Life’s Continuous Arcade Game





     “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on.  Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not worth much more than they?”  Matthew 6:25-26
     Raiders of the Lost Ark.  At this moment, you are no doubt hearing John Miller’s composition of the classic, upbeat theme song.  Think about that opening scene.  Scholar and adventurer, Henry “Indiana” Jones, inside a deep cave within the jungle.  Preparing to remove a precious artifact, he evaluates the situation and prepares a counterweight to replace the artifact.  The thinking is sound.  He makes the switch.  Perfect!  Unfortunately, the booby trap works differently than perceived.  An enormous boulder is let loose set to squash any who dared to breach this sacred chamber, resorting in Indiana Jones making like a bread truck and hauling buns out of there!
     The moral in this scene is quite simple: while you can try to prepare for everything that you may be able to foresee, you cannot be prepared for all that is ambiguous.  It’s too much!  How does this relate to the classic arcade game Pitfall?  No matter how high you leap, or how far you jump, or how graceful the swinging vine is, sometimes you just miss the landing spot and DOWN YOU GO!  That is the moment when we lose that perfect plan and the wrench gets thrown into the well-oiled machine.  A majority of people do not handle this well, at all.  Others fall into the pit and accept that things didn’t go according to plan and plot out the next move to get out of the pit. 
     God wants us to be prepared as much as possible.  Matthew, chapter 24, tells us to be prepared for the coming of Jesus, even though we will not know when that will happen (vs. 42, 44).  He doesn’t want us to be idle, just waiting for things to drop in our laps.  However, as He states in Matthew 6, He tells us not to be in constant worry.  While being excited about some event that happens in our lives, we do not want anxiety to overcome us.  That is a difficult concept that everyone has, to a certain degree.  It is also one of the easiest ways for Satan to infiltrate our thoughts.  The more we allow our anxieties to take over our thoughts, the more we allow Satan to poison our thoughts, pulling our trust away from the Lord.  No Bueno, my friends!
     Peter tells us, in his letter to the exiled Christians in the regions of Asia Minor, to cast our anxieties to the Father, because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7).  What I really love is that God also tells us, “You are blessed when you are feeling your most vulnerable to the events of life.  That is the time that you need me the most.”  As Matthew 5:3 puts it: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.”
     When we acknowledge the fact that, no matter how mapped out we try to make things, a trap will eventually snare us.  Do we go into panic mode in attempt to get control over those traps?  You can, but the results will still be the same.  A trip.  A stumble.  A change of plans.  A revision.  God wants us to dust ourselves off and keep moving.  These aren’t setbacks.  If anything, they are delays.  If Indiana Jones could keep his level-headedness to overcome a situation that went a little south, I think that we can overcome so much more with allowing God to get us through those pitfalls.

Heaven With A Gun





     “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”  Matthew 6:24

     I remember an old western, with the title above, filmed in 1969, starring Glenn Ford, about a former gunfighter turned preacher. This man, Jim Killian, wanted to put away the sins of his past and follow God, and bring God's word to others. When trouble starts brewing in his community, with no aid in sight, Killian straps on his guns, once more, to take the matter into his own hands. The problem is, to do that, he will be returning to his old ways. The town's madam, sort of a voice of conscience for Killian, says a line that I remember, to this day. She tells him he can be "gunman or preacher, Heaven or Hell", stating he cannot have both, he must choose one path or the other.

      In the book of Romans, chapter 3, it states that all of us, have and are sinners. We are frowned upon by God for choosing that life. However, it goes on to state that through His grace and the redemption of Jesus, we can receive the promise of eternal life.

      Now, take a look at Romans 6:23. It clearly states, that sin leads to death (Hell). There's no pardon.  No "it's ok, I know you didn't mean it." It's death, pure and simple. That's what lies in store for us. God knew this, He knew we could never be without sin, so He sent His Son, to be sacrificed, for us. So that we can step out of the clothes of sin and step into God's light.

      We are PROMISED Heaven, by living a sinless life, by turning ourselves to God. He, through Jesus, is giving us a chance to make up for our spotted, stained lives. He's telling us all we have to do is set down the "guns" for good and follow Him, and we will receive Jesus's salvation.

     Sadly, this doesn’t just go for those outside of the church.  Within the church society, there are those that “do God’s will” to support their own purpose.  They are, in essence, even more corrupted in their thoughts than those outside of the church.  They live for an appearance.  They do, based on how it will make them look toward others.  They may sound knowledgeable by even quoting certain scriptures (though they definitely overlook others).  We cannot be serving our own agenda and claim to serve God at the same time.  It just doesn’t work that way.

      We will continue to struggle in our lives. You will, and I will. What separates us from the rest, is our willpower to come back to God, and to fight the sins of our lives and make them part of our past, not our present.



A Mighty Lamb





   “And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.  When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.”   Hebrews 1:3-4

     Being alert is a vital factor to my hiking explorations.  Why?  I am, in a sense, invading the land of the wildlife, though not meaning to cause confrontation.  It is unwise to assume that, while I may see tracks of where other people have hiked, that I may not have an unfriendly encounter with some animal that may not like the fact that I am just a bit too close to their homes and families.  I traverse areas that are homes to bears and mountain lions, wildlife that can put up a decent fight when threatened.  So, though I may be enjoying my ventures, I keep constant alert.  I don’t want to unintentionally be a threat. 
     A lamb, on the other hand?  Pretty timid, shy, mild-tempered.  A lamb would likely turn tail and run, having spooked easily.  Yes, if I were to encounter an animal, I’d prefer to encounter a lamb.  Not much of a worry about being attacked, right?  Yes, a lamb. 
     Why would the Son of God be referred to as a Lamb?  Why a timid creature?  Jesus was certainly able to hold His own, after all.  He was part of God.  He could have called down an army of angels to destroy everyone that meant to harm Him.  He wasn’t weak or shy, like a lamb.  He was a turning point in history.  He was the definitive point in which people were to set aside the outdated teaching of the Old Testament (Law of Moses) and to bring a new order (Heb. 1: 2).  He healed many that were sick, blind, even raising the dead (Matthew 8, Mark 3 & 5, John 9, Luke 7 & 17…just to list a few).  He was in the seat of honor, at the right hand of God (Heb. 1:3).  Why a lamb?
     Jesus did not come to conquer.  He did not come to overthrow.  He did not come to forcefully enslave people to God.  He came as a choice.  He came to teach and set examples, giving Himself as a gift to save, should mankind choose to receive it.  His message was gentle, as a lamb’s demeanor.  His earthly life served to end with a sacrifice of blood, His own.  In essence, He was raised (on earth) as a sheep to be slaughtered.  That was His purpose.  That was His goal.  While many viewed His death as their victory, it was His shining moment.  God’s purpose did not end with the death of His Son, it has just begun.
     I am thankful that Jesus was, and is, the Lamb of God.  His life and purpose gives my life hope.  Not just my life on earth, but it gives hope for my soul.  A hope that I can join Him and the Father, one day, for all eternity. 
     Take a good, long reflection of that last statement, for yourself.  Feel free to let the goosebumps roll!