Line It Up

Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world,

but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.

Romans 12:2 (NIV)

Our two-year old grandson started throwing the typical tantrums for kids his age. If he gets irritated with a toy, he throws it. If he gets really upset, he hits his head on the wall or floor or whatever else he can find.

One day while doing a shapes puzzle, he surprised me. The puzzle has a circle, a square, a triangle, a cross, and a star. While the first three go in pretty quickly and easily, the cross and star do not. Instead of getting frustrated about making those two pieces go into place, I heard him say, “Line it up. Line it up.”  No tantrums or fits ensued while doing the puzzle. He lined up the pieces with the sides of the puzzle and they slid right in.

What sound advice! When life gets frustrating – line it up. Line it up with what one might ask? One great place to start is with scripture, God’s Word. How can we get through a difficult situation and still keep our Christian witness intact? Lining up our thoughts, feelings, and actions with what the Bible says gives us the means. Will God be honored with our reactions and actions? Can others see Jesus in us throughout the event?

Philippians 4:4-9 gives explicit instructions about keeping our heads above water. Line it up. Can we live by those standards?

Jesus describes loving God as the most important commandment and loving others as the second most important (Matthew 22:37-39.) Line it up. Can others see that love in us?

God does not expect us to wander around and wonder what to do. He gives believers the gift of his Spirit, his Love, and his Word. How amazing is that!

So, when questions or difficulties arise what can we do? Line it up!

Lord, you never meant for us to do this journey alone. You transform us and change our thoughts to line up with yours. Thank you so much.

Susan Partida