Use your Guidebook

Everyone makes mistakes.  No one is perfect.  I have heard that Amish will leave a flaw in every quilt they make, because no one is perfect.  So, if no one is perfect, why do we emulate other humans?  I often find kids at school waiting for others to answer and then parroting that given answer.  This is a very common coping mechanism to appear busy and focused, or intelligent and interactive, and yet still not do any work. I don’t want them to follow other students – it is like the blind leading the blind.

Matthew 15:14 “So ignore them.  They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.”

There is also a habit I have noticed of putting authority figures on little pedestals.  What we MUST keep in mind is that they are human too.  They will make mistakes too.  While they can often offer wisdom in a situation – we should still go to God first.  We should always seek our guidance from God before anyone – sound familiar?  Thou shall have no other gods before Me?  The commandment.  We often take the words of others, including a Pastor or teacher’s words, as law and true.  But teachers, pastors, elders, any authority figure – they are all human too.  And they CAN make mistakes.  God should always come first, in everything, even advice.  Who better can we ask for advice?  Who can offer us the best guidance for our situation; who knows our unique situations better?  GOD DOES!   Sometimes he will send us someone to bring us clarity, or direct us to someone who can help.  Trust God, just like the widow trusted God enough to feed Elijah from her last bit of food, and Elijah trusted God enough to continue to refill the food – we must trust God to lead us the right way.  (Read more in 1 Kings 17)

We do have a choice.  We can follow Jesus.  The right way to handle every situation is right there in front of us in the bible; in the Sword of the Spirit!  Jesus IS perfect!  His ways are shown to us in the pages of God’s Word.  We should be emulating Jesus in our choices, and behaviors, and words, and actions.  HE is the WAY!  God has given us our own instruction manual to life, our own guidebook for the wilderness of the world today….  We just have to choose to use it.  Don’t fall in the ditch.   Don’t copy the kid who blurts out the answers; copy Jesus!