Keeping 'In Tune' With God

(This is something I wrote two years ago...but for some reason didn't post it...so here it is...)

This week I had to opportunity to get our vehicles inspected in order to get our new license plates. You know the routine…wait in line for 2 hours to find out you forget one document. So frustrating. But, it got me thinking (while I was waiting) about inspections and how it applies to our spiritual lives.

I realized that my van has its own computer system that allows it to inspect itself constantly. You know that annoying "Check engine" light. If my van needs its own system to inspect itself, I bet God has a fool proof plan on how I should inspect myself.

So I got on my computer when I got home and looked. Sure enough…through out the Bible, God reminds us to inspect ourselves. Paul talks about it in 2 Corinthians 13:5a (NIV) - Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Everyone needs to take the time, on a regular basis to examine areas of their lives.

The best way to do this is with the Word of God, within the confines of community. In other words, we need one another to keep us honest with ourselves. Just as my car not only needs its own internal computer to examine itself, it needs an independent authority – a mechanic. Our independent authority is the combination of God’s Word and Community or each other.

When’s the last time you allowed yourself to be examined? When’s the last time you allowed others to truthfully speak into your life? Don’t wait until your ‘check engine’ or ‘check your prayer life’ light comes on. I hope you’ll take time in the next week or two to examine yourself and maybe even allow someone else to speak some truth to you. It’s God’s plan to keep us ‘in tune’ with Him.

Mirror, Mirror in His Word

Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if the mirror was never invented? I can hear all of you ladies out there screaming in freight. But think about it. The main purpose for looking into it is to be able to see yourself and make yourself look as clean and neat as possible. When I finish in a public restroom, I wash my hands but usually never look very intently into the mirror. I admit, it’s a personal issue for me. I’m not usually at all pleased with what I see. Are you happy with what you see in the mirror? More importantly, are you happy with what you see when you look into the mirror of God's Word? Or do you do like I do in public mirrors and not look very closely. In the book of James, He mentions several mistakes people make as they look into God's mirror.

James 1:22-25 (MSG)

Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like.

But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.

First, we merely glance at ourselves. Like me in a public mirror, we don’t carefully study ourselves as we read the Word. As followers of Christ too often we read a chapter of the Bible each day, but it is only a religious exercise and we fail to internalize it - see how it might impact our daily lives. Our conscience bothers us if we don’t have our daily reading time, when actually our conscience should bother us because we read the word carelessly.

The second mistake is that we forget what we see. Are you shocked at times at the image you see in the morning; as if you’ve forgotten just how messy you look first thing? If we were looking deeply enough into our hearts through his word, I’m not sure it would be so unforgettable.

Mistake number three is: we fail to obey what the Word tells us to do. We think that hearing is the same as doing, and it’s not. At times we enjoy substituting reading His word for doing it, or even talking for doing. We can talk all we want about how we look, but until we act on what we know - what good is it to us?

If we are to use God's mirror profitably, then we must look into it carefully and with heart-felt intent. No quick glances will do. We must examine our own hearts and lives in the light of God's Word. This requires time, attention, and devotion. How might you need to restructure your devotional times in order to look more intently into the mirror of God's Word? Five minutes with God each day will never accomplish a deep spiritual examination, though it’s a great place to start if you have yet to.