Bypassing God

Today: 2 Kings 1-3

I'll admit it--I bypass people sometimes.

I avoid work colleagues in the cafeteria when I know their projects fell to the bottom of my neverending, massive to-do list. I bypass short, middle-aged guys who show up alone at cocktail parties. I definitely bypass salespeople at mall kiosks selling Jessica Simpson-style hairpieces or lotion from the Dead Sea or both...in a weird combination kiosk called "Dead Sea Hair." (Just kidding--I don't think such a place exists, but I honestly wouldn't know...I completely avoid looking too closely at all mall kiosks!)

My reasons for bypassing people vary. Sometimes it's just because I'm in too much of a hurry. At other times, I avoid people because I'm embarrassed by my own errors (case in point: hiding from the colleague whose project I haven't tackled). In some cases, I bypass people to simply avoid awkwardness (apologies to the short, middle-aged guy). To seriously mess things up, I also totally bypass people I'd really like to talk to--which means I probably won't step out and mingle with a cute, friendly single guy at a party, either (unless he comes to talk to me first, that is!). And if I really screwed something up, I might try to avoid the people I love most--or even God Himself. That doesn't work well.

In today's passage, a king tried to bypass God. When he seriously injured himself, he sent off his messengers to consult with a false god about his health. And the real God wasn't happy about it. He showed up and showed His power. He knew what was going on. The king lost his life--partly because he ignored God and turned to an idol. God can't be bypassed. At all.

Why would a king even try to avoid Him? And perhaps more pointedly--why do you and I try to bypass God?

We can sometimes get away with bypassing people--I've become a pro at dodging mall kiosk salespeople. [No Dead Sea Hair for me! :) ] But God knows everything and sees everything. It's impossible to avoid Him, yet we often try--because we're busy, we're embarrassed, we feel awkward, we're ashamed or we think we're inadequate. That's goofy. God made us, God loves us and God knows everything about us anyway.

More than anything, He wants to connect with us. This may sound really lame, but it's kind of like He's the most incredible person at a party--who finds you in the corner and pulls you into His circle. In reality, His love is much greater than that! He laid His life on the line for us. Why would we even try to bypass One who loves us that much?!?

Tomorrow: 2 Kings 4-5

When sin is a stalker

Today: Numbers 31-32

When my sisters and I were growing up, our parents always encouraged us to be honest and open with them by saying things like, "The truth always comes out." At moments while growing up, I thought it was a Christian parent's way of saying, "I have eyes in the back of my head."

But I think they were right: The truth always comes out...eventually. If it doesn't happen on this planet, God knows the truth and, for better or worse, it will come out in heaven.

In today's passage, Moses had an interesting discussion with a few tribal leaders who wanted to settle outside the Promised Land...but promised to fight and help the rest of God's people take possession of it. Here's what Moses said to them:

"If you do what you say,

take up arms before God for battle and together go across the Jordan ready,

before God, to fight until God has cleaned his enemies out of the land,

then when the land is secure

you will have fulfilled your duty to God and Israel.

Then this land will be yours to keep before God.
"But if you don't do what you say,

you will be sinning against God;

you can be sure that your sin will track you down.

So, go ahead. Build towns for your families and corrals for your livestock.

Do what you said you'd do."

Moses' words saying, "...your sin will track you down" are interesting. It's makes me think of sin as a stalker--a type of ninja detective on the hunt to capture people. Although through Christ's forgiveness, we can be free from the sin's eternal consequences (e.g. we can escape Hell), I think sin's ability to track people down does impact Christians.

One of the primary reasons is because there are natural consequences for sin. For example, if I lie to my parents, God still loves me and forgives me, but my parents may be hurt and have a hard time trusting me. If you had an addiction to drugs, God may still have a place for you in heaven, but you might have to overcome some challenges (rehab, relationship issues, physical effects) as a result of that addiction.

Another reason the stalker nature of sin impacts Christians? Guilt. I've met some people who carry guilt from sin they were involved in years ago. They asked God for forgiveness and He forgave them and forgot that sin even existed, but they continue to live in a guilty kind of fear, stalked by their past mistakes. I believe God would say to these people, "Shame off you!"

Lastly, sin can stalk our lives by throwing temptations at us. Luckily, we all have the power to say no to those temptations and/or we can try to avoid them entirely.

Although sin may be a stalker, it's important to know that for those who simply believe in Him and accept the gift of salvation, Jesus overcame the eternal consequences of our sin once and for all. And to top it off, He can help us to fight against sin and its power over our everyday lives--if we simply ask Him for help. God can help us walk in freedom and wisdom, doing our best to make decisions and live in a way that honors Him. We'll never be perfect, but at least we can try to knock out our stalker. I'm off to practice ninja moves... :)

Tomorrow: Numbers 33-34