With 2006 coming to a close I was wondering what would be my theme for 2007. A nudge from the Holy Spirit brought to mind a journal entry from November 28th:
And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight. Every valley shall be filled And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough ways smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.' " Luke 3:3-6
Every valley filled in and every mountain made low? Are the ups and downs of life a lie we buy into? Can it all be level ground with Jesus?
As I considered these things, it occurred to me that I expect life to be like an emotional roller coaster. As I examine the scriptures, I wonder if life with Jesus should not be one of ups and downs.
This is not to say that there won’t be mountain top experiences or moments where we are not just in the slimy pit but feel like we ARE the slime in the pit. It is, however, a statement that we don’t need to exist in either one of these extremes. Scripture seems to indicate that, for the most part, we should be on level ground.
Isaiah tells us that God makes level the paths of the righteous (26:7) and Jeremiah (31:7-9) says that the level path is a promise for repentance. Proverbs (4:26) charges us to make level paths for our own feet and Hebrews (12:13) adds that by doing so we can heal rather than disable the lame. Hmm…powerful stuff. | 