True Love or Legalism?

Sometimes in my Christian walk, I am accused of being legalistic or dogmatic, meaning the accuser thinks I am just checking off a 'to-do' list of how to get to heaven. I remind myself (and them, if they listen long enough) that as we keep God's commandments (the perfect law of liberty, as it states in James 1:25) we do so according to God's stipulations, not our own. It is not a card-punch system, as if to say, Well that is out of the way for today! But it is a life-style. God is able to change the heart when we come to Him in truth, and we do His will out of love for Him and to share that precious story with the lost. Many times I've been accused of being unloving in that, or legalistic, as if we are able to define these words by our own standards. Although it hurts, especially when coming from someone I care deeply about, I remind myself that God sets the standards. If someone perceives my quoting scripture or sharing what God requires for salvation, is that loving or unloving? If I tell someone who wants to jump off a bridge what the consequences of that jump are, do I care? Do I show love? I think you get my point. Sometimes the other person might not like what I say, but that does not change the love behind the words. I try as I bring up my own children to impress on them that initial perception is not always a reliable guide. We must look beyond that initial perception to the truth and intent of those words or actions. In other words, It is up to us to respond with thoughtful deliberation, not impulse.

Remember that God is the great Creator, it is He who has made us (Psalm 100:3) and He who sets the guidelines of our salvation through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 3:21; Acts 2:38; James 4:12; 1 John 2:3) I hope and pray today that we will all consider the truth of God's word and draw closer to Him as we become more like Him each day, loving in truth.

Today we visited at two nursing homes in town. It is always a pleasure, because, no matter how we sound, someone claps, or at least thanks us for coming. They are not applauding our beautiful singing. They just love having us come, sing songs they remember and maybe share an encouraging word, a pat on the back or hold their hand for a moment. The cookies are an added treat, but I think even without them they would love our visits.

This time, we had our 2 eldest grandson's with us and that was the best. These older people who may not see many but their elder companions at the home, see these little faces and want to talk to them, to hold their hands. The boys were good to shake hands, say thank you for all the compliments and the four year old even helped to pass out treats.

Most of those greetings brought smiles. But I saw a few sad faces, looks of rememberance of their days when their own children and grandchildren were small, and the knowledge that they now might not come around much was on my mind.

One lady shared this with me, "When they are young, they step on your toes. When they are old, they step on your heart."

It is hard to go, sometimes, to visit with those I do not really know, to listen to them talk about others I don't know.

Then I remember that one day I, too, will be old. I may be somewhere I don't want to be. Who will come to see me? Who will listen to my oft' told stories? I would like to think that I do what I can today, and plant the seeds of serving in my children and grandchildren. I hope that they will learn the lesson of true Christian living. I hope they will live by the example that was set before them. There is a Latin phrase I like, "Princeps Exemplar;" lead by example. I hope that is the inheritance I leave for my children.

Thank you for taking time to read today!

Recently, a friend told me of watching her son parachute to the earth from 10,000 feet. She proudly described his perfect landing. Even after 34 jumps, it was only the second time he had been able to land on his feet. I do not know a lot about skydiving, but I do know I've never had an urge to jump from a plane. As I listened to her, a thought came to me that perhaps seems like a 'no brainer.' But if he wanted his parachute to open, he must pull on the chord. Then as I read on the subject, I found out there is a safety feature on modern parachutes so that if the diver does not open his chute by a certain altitude it opens automatically. That's not very technical I know, and if I were more adventurous I'd actually try this to see how it works. Think I'll just take the experts word on this.

Some people believe our spiritual life is like this parachute. All they must do is say 'I believe' and their spiritual 'parachute' opens. You know, if I miss something essential in opening it, God being the wonderful Being He is, will cause it to 'open' on it's own. Uh, I hate to burst anyone's bubble but it really does not work like that. Something more is required of us. I know, I hear you thinking, there she goes, telling me about all the rules, etc. . .

I'm used to being called legalistic, dogmatic, or whatever the current term is. But the fact is this: God, the Creator, and Author of our faith wrote the book. He set the law of gravity in place and also governs our relationship with Him. Just as the skydiver must obey the rules of nature and gravity to have a successful jump, we must obey God to have a successful 'landing' in eternity. It is only by recognizing and accepting His guidelines do we have the relationship with Him we desire. We cannot make the rules to suit ourselves. We must submit willingly to the ones He has already established.

In the kingdom of God, there are no automatic chute deployments. Here is to more happy landings!