warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.”
I Corinthians 10:11 (NIV)
“What in the world is going on?” I thought to myself the other day as I watched arms waving from car after car as drivers tried frantically to flag down a woman in a little red van getting ready to pull onto the interstate.
A few seconds later I spotted the reason: a big coffee mug and an even bigger camera were hitching a ride on the roof of the van. The woman behind the wheel kept driving, completely oblivious to the people trying to help the “hitchhikers” on her roof avoid a messy and disastrous end to their ride.
She finally glanced at the drivers but, ignoring their frantic waving and gesturing, she simply smiled, waved back . . . and drove on. Somewhere down the highway as she picked up speed, the coffee mug and camera would fly off the van roof and smash into the highway.
Had she simply stopped long enough to see why the drivers were gesturing toward the top of her van, she would have immediately realized that they were trying to warn her of a sure catastrophe.
God’s Word is full of warnings and caution signs designed to “flag us down” before we, like the van driver, are faced with certain disaster. He knows that decisions and choices that we make as Christians will not be welcomed by those in the world and He continually warns us to hold on to His Word when we feel overwhelmed, vulnerable and weak.
He also knows that our enemy will always be on the attack and we cannot let up for a single minute as we guard against him. We are told in I Peter 5:8 to “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Now that is a warning we all need to heed!
Just as an earthly father warns his children about dangers around them, how much more our Heavenly Father continually cautions us to keep our focus on Him as He points us in the right direction for our lives.
And if we don’t heed His warnings? If we ignore all His attempts to get our attention? Then we will face the consequences of deciding to smile, wave and continue down the path we have chosen.
I urge you today not to ignore the “waving arms” in your path. They may be counsel from a Godly Christian friend or a devotional you read one morning or a verse in the Bible that speaks to your heart. No matter the form they may take, please recognize them as our Father’s longing to “flag us down” and direct our paths away from flying mugs and cameras.
Father, how many times have I raced ahead and not heeded your warnings in my life. And how many times could a bad decision have been averted if only I had looked to you. Please help me to spend time in your Word and to seek your will in my life. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
R.A.P. it up . . .
Reflect
Can you think of a time in which you felt the Lord placing warning signs in your path but you still went ahead with your plans?
What were your reasons for ignoring those warning signs? What was the result?
Apply
Ask a Godly prayer warrior who is continually in the Word to be an accountability partner with you and to pray with you as decisions require answers in your life.
Keep a prayer journal of Scripture that encourages you to seek the Lord in all areas of your life before making important decisions.
Power
I Corinthians 10:11 (NIV) “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.”
I Corinthians 4:14 (NIV) “I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you, as my dear children.”
Ephesians 6:11 (NIV) “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”
(For more of Nancy Hughes' writing, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room.)
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