Where Does One Begin
Where does one begin when the familiar turns unfamiliar? I admit, I’m stuck in a time warp of what I thought were the basics in life.
Some timeless basics: Be present with those whom you walk beside. Sunday is a day in which one takes time to gather nutrients needed to survive the rest of the week. Civil discourse means conversation and discussion with those who might see things differently, while still loving your neighbor as yourself…just to name a few.
Back in the day, God gave all mankind a top ten list for our protection. You know the Ten Commandments, and if you don’t, they may be found in Exodus 20:1-17. As things change over time, the wisdom of this plumb line is still a good guide to take hold of. One need merely look around to see what happens when the top ten no longer offer guidance. We’re not talking a to-do-list here. We are talking a heart map given for protection—given out of love.
Yet, we reject. We, like Eve, begin to question— He didn’t really mean that. Certainly, that was written back in the day because times have changed. And once we question God, the kind of questioning where we justify our ways, the heart begins to develop cataracts—clouding our vision.
We were created in His image and likeness as told all bold in Genesis, the book just before Exodus where those top ten are found. And what does the very first chapter of the very first book of the Bible say? “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…’” ("us,” as in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit three in One.)
When we end up front and center upon our own stage, recreating that which He created, it is no longer about a stage we are passing through in order to become more like Christ. Rather, when we meet our own needs by following our own script, it becomes about us—not Him.
There is a lot to unpack here. The twister of truth twisting the tongue is always ready and willing to rewrite the script. “Nothing new under the sun” (Ecc. 1:9) as it’s been going on since the beginning of time. Some things never change. The top ten listed in Exodus were written to help us make our way out of the wilderness. Interesting it is that when we rewrite scripts to meet our own needs, how quickly we become lost in the wilderness.
The grace of perspective is often given those who desire the next generation to have a holy perspective. Joel 1:3 encourages. “Tell your children about it, and let your children tell their children, and their children—the next generation.” Ephesians 3:20 brings it home. “To Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”