The Road
These are a few phrases that many have uttered over the years, some will be familiar and some may not, depending upon how old you are.
“The road less traveled”, “On the road again”, “The long and winding road”, “King of the road”. And I’m sure you may have made up a few of your own.
As I have had opportunity to travel the country, I have often said, “I should stop there some day and look around”. I keep driving by places of interest saying those same words, or just wondering when I will have time to stop and look around.
Some of my thoughts and writings will overlap from time to time, so please bear with me. A classic Country song was titled, “The Class of ‘57”. It was done by the Statler Brothers and the basis of the song was that when we graduated high school, we thought we had arrived and the world had been waiting for us to arrive. But as time went on things just seemed to be the “same old same old”. Friends were married and divorced, the guy who was voted most likely to succeed got hooked on drugs, some worked in the factory, some became bank vice-presidents. And others seemed to have a very “ordinary life”. A few, if any, became famous for one thing or another, but for the most part, life kind of swallowed us up, we became middle class.
Let me say, there’s nothing wrong with being middle class. But, also let me say or ask, “What happened to those dreams”? Did stuff get in the way? Did we get hooked on something that stole our lives away? Did we get hurt by someone that changed our way of thinking? Did we get hardened by this cruel viciousness of life?
Don’t you wish you could have a “do over” a “mulligan” (for you golfers), like I described in Playing Games, “at the end it all goes back in the box”. The next time you play, you start out at even and build your way up. All the players have the same amount and the even opportunities to “roll the dice”, “shuffle the deck and deal the cards”, and “spin the spinner to advance”. Like the “box games”, there are rules to follow and believe me, some play by the rules more than others. They will read you the rules every 15 minutes, while others will try to break the rules every 15 minutes.
Then you have the “rules for the road”. You drive on this side and I drive on the other. Red is for stop and green is for go. Speed limits vary as to location, city, suburbia, country, highway or interstate, but rules are rules no matter where you find them.
So why do we get so uptight about the thoughts of absolutes? Jump off any 20 story building in normal clothing and you go down, it’s called gravity. If you stay out in the sun too long, you get sun burned. The North Pole is always cold and near the equator is always hot. Even though medicine is not an exact science, doctors use the accuracy of technology and what has worked to diagnose patients and treat them. Remember Bill Cosby’s, “Why Is There Air”, air is an absolute. If you mix the molecules in any other form, you don’t have air. I could give pages and pages of things you would agree with that they have to be constant or absolute for your life to continue to exist, so I say there are absolutes.
Then why is it so hard to admit to spiritual absolutes? You say, “All religions lead to God”. There is a religion that states, “You can have more than one wife”. The Bible says, “One man, one woman until death”. Which is right? One religion says, “You need to stop, face their holy land, and pray three times a day”. The Bible says, “(of God) I hear your inner most thoughts”. Which is right? Most religions say that Jesus was a good man or even a prophet; others say He was an angel. The Bible says, “You are My Son, My Only Son”, again speaking from God’s perspective. Which is right?
My text is John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father (GOD) but through Me”. Sounds pretty narrow doesn’t it? Sounds almost absolute, doesn’t it?
Matthew 7:13, 14 Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter it. For the gate is small, and the road is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.
This Matthew passage goes along with my writing called “Lines and Dots”, if you didn’t receive it let me know and I will send it along. If all roads lead to God why do so many reject Jesus’ statement? In essence they are saying that all roads lead to God, except Jesus. Did you know that Jesus is the most controversial person in all of history? As you saw in Matthew, the road is narrow that leads to life, and few are they who find it.
There will be scores more of people in hell than will be in heaven, maybe 100 to one, or even more.
Remember the phrase, “Well, everyone is doing it”! And the response was, “Well, if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you jump too”? That’s what it will be like in making a decision not to explore the claims of Jesus more seriously for yourself.
Believe it or not you are on a spiritual journey; that too is an absolute. I’m going back to music again; a song entitled Sacred Journey by the group First Call goes like this:
Wide awake at three a. m., when I hear the whistle blow,
Watchin’ all the cars go by, where does everybody go?
Every road, every stream, You are there my Lord.
Heavens mystery, how You are here with me,
On this sacred journey.
Open the gates of your heart (on this sacred journey)
Let the light into the dark (on this sacred journey)
He’ll meet you right where you are.
Spillin’ thoughts across the page, morning sun is sneakin’ in,
Say a little prayer for me, as another day begins,
Strength to strength life goes on, room to room, dark till dawn
You are there my Lord, Heavens mystery,
How You are here with me, on this sacred journey.
The message is in the words, the passion is in the music.
Are you awake in the middle of the night? He may be calling you to search for Him. Do you wonder about all the cars (people) rushing here and there, why some drive so fast and reckless. He is here, do you see Him? Every sunrise, every step of life, He is waiting for you to call His Name, Heaven’s Mystery. One step and you can be on a “Sacred Journey”.
Recommended reading:
More Than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell… small book, easy read, told as a story.
Evidence That Demands a Verdict and More Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell… Full text book and reference book
The Case For Christ by Lee Strobel… medium read
And of course the Bible… start with Genesis and read Chapter 1 then go to the New Testament and read the Gospel of John Chapter 1. Go back to Genesis and read Chapters 1,2,3 and then go back to the gospel of John and read Chapters 1,2,3. Finish the Gospel of John and then start the Gospel of Matthew. Please read at you own timing and speed even if it is one chapter a day. Remember to always ask God to reveal Himself to you.
Maybe you should pull off the road you are on and at the next rest stop and get refreshed. Another familiar phrase is, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step”.
If you need more help or encouragement, email me.
Thanks for letting me bend your ear,
Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com
April 6th 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Lines and Dots
December 4th, 2008
And when I looked, I saw a stage where four men stood. There were three canvases, two men stood before one canvas and the other two men had a canvas of their own.
The man on the left, with a single canvas, was drawing vertical lines. Most were straight lines of varying widths, but a few were curved or squiggly.
The man on the right with a single canvas was drawing, what seemed to be random dots and each dot had a number beside it.
The two men in the middle stood before the same canvas. This canvas was displayed by lines and rows of dots from edge to edge and top to bottom.
Nothing seemed to make sense. There was no artistic beauty or value to any of the canvases, white canvas with black lines or dots on them. I pondered the canvases for what seemed to be hours. As the men stood before their canvases they seemed to be waiting for further instructions. My pondering brought me to a dead end.
Finally, I asked the man who stood before the canvas with the lines on it, “Sir, does your canvas have a purpose? I’m sorry but I just don’t understand your picture.”
He said, “Lines are being drawn around the earth. Some lines are wide and some narrow, some are wavy and some are slightly curved or bent.”
“Sir”, I continued, “but why are the lines different?”
The man said, “Do you see the line in the middle?”
“I can see a line in the middle that is very narrow and is actually hard to see because it is so thin”.
“That thin line is God’s standard; it is His way and His truth. The other lines around on the left and on the right are man’s “ways” his “truths”. Some lines are wide and some are narrow, those are how man has chosen to live and the laws he has set for himself. Even though they are straight, they are very broad compared to God’s. The curved lines are the abominations against God’s law. The sharper the curves the more radical man has become.
As I looked at the canvas again I saw more of the reality of what the man was saying.
I then asked the other single man standing before his canvas, “Sir, what does your canvas mean, it is so random. It doesn’t seem to make sense like the one with the lines?”
As he began to speak he began to connect the dots. “My canvas has a picture on it. Each dot has a number by it and when you start at one and connect that dot to the dot which had the number two by it and then three and then four, by the time you have connected all the dots and returned to the number one dot, you have a complete picture.”
He continued to connect the dots and as he did, I began to see some things that looked familiar. When he had finished, it was a magnificent line picture which needed no color to enhance its beauty.
At that same time the two men, before on canvas of vertical dots and horizontal dots, began to connect the dots on their canvas. Each in turn would connect one dot to another on the vertical or horizontal axis. This process went on for hours and then something happened. One of the men boxed in a square and put his initial in the square, “J”. That set off a random set of connections and as the boxes were completed a “J” was put in the box.
What I now recognized as, the opponent in this game began to make his boxed connections, was the one with the most boxes, win’s the game.
As if my thoughts were being read by the man, who had marked the “J” in his box, he turned and gave me a stern look and without words, I sensed within myself, his words, “This is no “game”.
I had thought I was having a dream and it seemed to be like “The Price Is Right” and I had three doors to open and I could choose one of them. Only I was standing before three canvases, each profound and each prophetic. Then I realized that the two men before the lines and picture dots were angels. Then I realized the one man before the canvas who were connecting the dots and marking with a “J” was Jesus. The other man was marking with an “S” was Satan.
Then I truly understood that this was no “game”.
The war is on, lines are being drawn, the dots are being connected, and the souls of men are in the offing. Are you following the thin line of God’s way and God’s truth, or are you trying to bend the line to fit your life or lifestyle?
Are you broadening the line to make yourself feel better?
The man, standing before the canvas, connecting the dots with numbers was connecting in coordination with the men connecting the squares. As the J was initialed, the man would connect dots with a marker of a brilliant, shinning gold. When the man initialing with the S connected the squares, the man would connect dots with a black marker.
The world is being divided and has always been divided by good and evil. Jesus is calling out a people for Himself. At the same time Satan is blinding the eyes of many, many people, unfortunately, too many.
The black connected dots are those who seek power or money, or both. They seek to control people through terror, through intimidation, even through giving them money. A few will control the many.
The golden connections are those who have found hope and peace in Jesus. Their connections are just as important as the others. They will need to use their connections to move through the years known as “end times”. As the “dark side” controls more and more and life and religion, mainly the Jewish and Christian faiths, the “church will need to go underground and take care of each other. The worship will be closed and quiet. The mainline churches will continue to have services, under the control of the government. Meaning, you can say this and you can’t say that, “alas” Germany 1930’s.
As Francis Schaeffer said, “How should we then live?” What will be our course of living in the years to come? How will we prepare ourselves and those the Lord entrusts to us?
If an angel were to connect the dots of your life would we see a beautiful picture that needed no color to enhance its beauty?
Your life can be a beautiful picture when you begin to live God’s way and live God’s truth. All you have to do is say something like this, “God, if You are there and You can make me into a beautiful picture, go ahead and do it. I’m tired of my life the way it is, take it and make it into Your beautiful picture.
Following the Shepherd,
Your Friend in Christ,
Ron Eskew
reskew@aol.com
December 4th, 2008
And when I looked, I saw a stage where four men stood. There were three canvases, two men stood before one canvas and the other two men had a canvas of their own.
The man on the left, with a single canvas, was drawing vertical lines. Most were straight lines of varying widths, but a few were curved or squiggly.
The man on the right with a single canvas was drawing, what seemed to be random dots and each dot had a number beside it.
The two men in the middle stood before the same canvas. This canvas was displayed by lines and rows of dots from edge to edge and top to bottom.
Nothing seemed to make sense. There was no artistic beauty or value to any of the canvases, white canvas with black lines or dots on them. I pondered the canvases for what seemed to be hours. As the men stood before their canvases they seemed to be waiting for further instructions. My pondering brought me to a dead end.
Finally, I asked the man who stood before the canvas with the lines on it, “Sir, does your canvas have a purpose? I’m sorry but I just don’t understand your picture.”
He said, “Lines are being drawn around the earth. Some lines are wide and some narrow, some are wavy and some are slightly curved or bent.”
“Sir”, I continued, “but why are the lines different?”
The man said, “Do you see the line in the middle?”
“I can see a line in the middle that is very narrow and is actually hard to see because it is so thin”.
“That thin line is God’s standard; it is His way and His truth. The other lines around on the left and on the right are man’s “ways” his “truths”. Some lines are wide and some are narrow, those are how man has chosen to live and the laws he has set for himself. Even though they are straight, they are very broad compared to God’s. The curved lines are the abominations against God’s law. The sharper the curves the more radical man has become.
As I looked at the canvas again I saw more of the reality of what the man was saying.
I then asked the other single man standing before his canvas, “Sir, what does your canvas mean, it is so random. It doesn’t seem to make sense like the one with the lines?”
As he began to speak he began to connect the dots. “My canvas has a picture on it. Each dot has a number by it and when you start at one and connect that dot to the dot which had the number two by it and then three and then four, by the time you have connected all the dots and returned to the number one dot, you have a complete picture.”
He continued to connect the dots and as he did, I began to see some things that looked familiar. When he had finished, it was a magnificent line picture which needed no color to enhance its beauty.
At that same time the two men, before on canvas of vertical dots and horizontal dots, began to connect the dots on their canvas. Each in turn would connect one dot to another on the vertical or horizontal axis. This process went on for hours and then something happened. One of the men boxed in a square and put his initial in the square, “J”. That set off a random set of connections and as the boxes were completed a “J” was put in the box.
What I now recognized as, the opponent in this game began to make his boxed connections, was the one with the most boxes, win’s the game.
As if my thoughts were being read by the man, who had marked the “J” in his box, he turned and gave me a stern look and without words, I sensed within myself, his words, “This is no “game”.
I had thought I was having a dream and it seemed to be like “The Price Is Right” and I had three doors to open and I could choose one of them. Only I was standing before three canvases, each profound and each prophetic. Then I realized that the two men before the lines and picture dots were angels. Then I realized the one man before the canvas who were connecting the dots and marking with a “J” was Jesus. The other man was marking with an “S” was Satan.
Then I truly understood that this was no “game”.
The war is on, lines are being drawn, the dots are being connected, and the souls of men are in the offing. Are you following the thin line of God’s way and God’s truth, or are you trying to bend the line to fit your life or lifestyle?
Are you broadening the line to make yourself feel better?
The man, standing before the canvas, connecting the dots with numbers was connecting in coordination with the men connecting the squares. As the J was initialed, the man would connect dots with a marker of a brilliant, shinning gold. When the man initialing with the S connected the squares, the man would connect dots with a black marker.
The world is being divided and has always been divided by good and evil. Jesus is calling out a people for Himself. At the same time Satan is blinding the eyes of many, many people, unfortunately, too many.
The black connected dots are those who seek power or money, or both. They seek to control people through terror, through intimidation, even through giving them money. A few will control the many.
The golden connections are those who have found hope and peace in Jesus. Their connections are just as important as the others. They will need to use their connections to move through the years known as “end times”. As the “dark side” controls more and more and life and religion, mainly the Jewish and Christian faiths, the “church will need to go underground and take care of each other. The worship will be closed and quiet. The mainline churches will continue to have services, under the control of the government. Meaning, you can say this and you can’t say that, “alas” Germany 1930’s.
As Francis Schaeffer said, “How should we then live?” What will be our course of living in the years to come? How will we prepare ourselves and those the Lord entrusts to us?
If an angel were to connect the dots of your life would we see a beautiful picture that needed no color to enhance its beauty?
Your life can be a beautiful picture when you begin to live God’s way and live God’s truth. All you have to do is say something like this, “God, if You are there and You can make me into a beautiful picture, go ahead and do it. I’m tired of my life the way it is, take it and make it into Your beautiful picture.
Following the Shepherd,
Your Friend in Christ,
Ron Eskew
reskew@aol.com
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