Reflections from Pastors Retreat 2003

"The Lamp"

Last night I woke up and reached across to the nightstand and hit the lamp with my hand. The lamp fell over and the glass lampshade broke when it fell off and hit the floor.

In the darkness and my unfamiliarity with the room (OK, and my mostly asleep state) I reached out without looking and the result is a broken, and quite un-replaceable, glass lampshade

Through this incident, God taught me that I need to look and observe more and operate blindly less. The more we look - the more we see.

How many times have we ran headlong into life without taking the time to see what was ahead, what the pitfalls are and consider how our actions may affect other people? Great conviction comes upon my spirit as I consider the mistakes of my life that could have been averted if I had only took a few moments to look before leaping!

Our Christian life is like this also. God has so much out there for us. Beautiful things that will bless us, warnings that will protect us, peace that can restore our joy and hope and His love that can saves us and give us hope and future; all there, waiting for us to quit "running the rat race" and begin to look closer and closer at Him.

Jude 21 teachers us to live our lives in such a way that the Love of God CAN bless us. I am beginning to understand the critical nature of this verse.. we miss the "Love Boat" because we are too busy looking at all the pretty ships. We do not see God because of all the distractions and duties of our day.

The truth is that the things that we really MUST DO requires no technology, no schedule and no by-laws - what we MUST DO requires only you and God. What we must choose is to reject the "stuff" and 'shinning objects" of distraction and take the time to look for God's Face.

To do this we must first develop a desire and the heart to slow down and look for God. Take the time to see what is going on here and now, as well as what is to come. Look before we leap and become broken vessels that cannot be replaced. We are, after all, one of a kind!

Bob Alderman is pastor of First Baptist Church of Rio Grande City and these reflections came from a time of retreat provided by the Pastors Retreat Network at the Texas Stagecoach Inn near Utopia, TX. Pastor Bob may be reached at brobob@brobob.org.