Thought Before Choice.....

On April 26, 1986 shortly after midnight, there occurred near the Ukrainian town of Chernobyl a horrific event.  A gradual meltdown of reactor 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant started as a result of unauthorized testing and a faulty reactor design.  It was by far the worst nuclear accident ever, which immediately sent a radioactive cloud across two continents.  Many suffered large scale involuntary irradiation due to extensive secrecy, as well as many types of cancer.  To this day the Ukrainian government maintains an 18 mile exclusion zone around the former bustling city, also known by people there as the "Alienation Zone".  In the neighboring town of Pripyat hundreds of on lookers watched in amazement on the day of the incident as graphite in the reactor fire burned as a bright rainbow hundreds of feet in the air.  Little did they know that this beautiful vision would also kill nearly all of them from acute radiation poisoning.

Why start out this post with such a horrible event in human history?  Simply put, this whole nightmare that I just recounted was initiated and played out through poor choices.  Reactor staff decided to perform a test involving the shut down of the reactor, one which was neither advised nor sanctioned through policy.  Their choice affected hundreds of thousands that they never even saw or met.  What choices do we make everyday without the thought of the repercussions or who we are affecting?  The intention is not to equate a nuclear disaster with that of many simple decisions made in our lives which turn out less than incredible.  Pay attention to the underlying principle of the event.  The staff at Chernobyl did what they wanted to with little or no regard for how it would affect those around them, or the possible dangers.  The growing trend in society is to act first and throw out the excuses and cover ups later.  Emotion seems to rule the thinking of many in society as they get "caught up in the moment."  So what is the lesson here?  Let's try the oldie but goodie, "Think before you act."  Every choice we make affects so many more people around us than just me, myself, and I.  I have sat in a room over the last couple of months on Sunday telling a group of teenagers three of the most important things they could do in their lives to pursue a relationship with God and maintain a feeling of  freedom in their lives.

1.  Be selfless in your actions.
2. Never do anything you would not be willing to post on the front page of the newspaper.
2. Learn to forgive and be forgiven.

Although their are so many other "life lessons" I truly feel that these reflect a base standard of what any human being should embrace, whether Christian or non-Christian.  

Psalm 15:        ¹ LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent?  Who may live on your holy mountain?  ² The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart;  ³ whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others; ⁴ who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the LORD; who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind; ⁵ who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things will never be shaken.

The Little Things that Count...

Sometimes it is the little things in life that are often overlooked.  I am not talking about forgetting to do a chore at home, or leaving something out on the counter overnight.  Let's talk about sin.  Most often the little sins in life can lead to much bigger issues down the road.  Yet these are regarded as acceptable short falls in our everyday lives. Although God tells us that all sin is the same, it is most often the common sins that keep us from a greater relationship with God.  Let's review some of these sins I am talking about, and this is the short list: lying, stealing, greed, selfishness, disrespect toward others, seeking revenge, gossip, foul language, and so on.  Quite often these "little" sins generally cause one of two outcomes.  Lets talk about these in more depth.

The first result of accepting these little sins is the rocky path they lead us down.  One small sin leads to the mental acceptance of committing something on a grander scale.  I like to use this analogy even though some disagree with it's comparative characteristics.  Drug users will often start off with an illicit drug that yields much milder affects than others.  As they get more comfortable and welcome a more satisfying feeling they move into harder narcotics such as PCP, heroin, LSD, etc.  I have been caught in the destructive chain of lying in the past.  I always though how a small lie wouldn't hurt, and then another, and then another, until I told so many that it was hard to keep the truth straight anymore.  My lies led me into accepting things into my life and making choices that were spiritually and morally wrong.  I had convinced myself everything was okay as I progressed through the common sins I became more accepting of in my life.  Although I never used drugs in my life, lying was just as bad.  If you don't believe that then you need to take a long hard look in the mirror!

The second result of accepting common sin in your life is the rift that is created between you, and truly knowing a guilt free life with Christ.  When I was sitting at home the other day my son had come into the living room to see me.  A couple minutes later my daughter yells for saying my son had just taken a baby doll from her.  Typically I would yell my son's name and ask, "What is going on out there?"  Instead I looked over and saw the rare sigh of relief and freedom in his face when he knew that he had nothing to do with it.  How incredible is that feeling when guilt loses it's grip on your life? 

I taught this lesson to a class of Junior High students at church last Sunday.  I felt like the reception  was hit and miss, however, it hit home for me.  We fail to take sin seriously day in and day out.  Take that second look at your life today and think about your actions.  Do you sit their and gossip about other people?  Do you swear and cuss at work, maybe at home as well, and then think calling yourself a child of God works for you?  So many people want to view themselves mentally and/or physically strong, and think it is found in being a parent, going to the gym, talking back to someone, or whatever else flips the bill.  Everyone hits that instantaneous moment of making a choice when different paths lay in front of them.  Hold yourself accountable for your actions, and hold others accountable for theirs! 

The Armor of God:  Ephesians 6

 ¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
 ¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.