13 A joyful heart
makes a face cheerful,
but a sad heart produces
a broken spirit.
Proverbs 15
Our theme for today is joy! Enjoyment!
Our theme is “love the journey”!
Look at our sign for today. Isn’t it more fun than most of the signs we’ve been discussing? Many of our signs are bright orange warning signs. Others are regulatory – a nice word for “legal,” “restrictive,” “demanding.” Many of these signs tell you where you shouldn’t enter. Others tell you which way you can’t go. Still others warn us that the next few miles may be rough – “loose gravel” and “road construction.”
But today’s sign is not like that! It’s a simple bicycle. It’s a reminder to enjoy the journey.
Now, all of these other signs are vital and important! They keep us safe along life’s road. They point us in the direction we need to go. They lead us steadily toward freedom.
But today’s sign has another purpose. It’s here to remind you that your life is a gift. And God wants you to enjoy it!
He want’s your “heart” to be “joyful”! (See today’s verse.) He wants your “face” to be “cheerful.” And while we will all face occasional grief and sadness in this sin-stained world, a perpetually “sad heart” and “broken spirit” is a wasted life.
No!
Fight against that!
Push through the trials, claim God’s freedom, and love the journey!
The favorite verse in many people’s lives is Jeremiah 29:11. See if this isn’t a proclamation that joyfully proclaims: Love the Journey …
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
When I’m hearing the word “plans” in this verse, I’m thinking of God as a highway engineer. Well, I can imagine the highway engineer looking at the closest major intersection to my house, and shaking his head in disgust. In afternoon rush hour, this intersection is a disaster. It’s long lines, stopped traffic, and accidents waiting to happen.
Someday the traffic engineer will probably draw up a roundabout to be put in. Then for the next decade or two, this roundabout will be an incredible blessing to me and my neighbors. Nevertheless, I absolutely dread the road construction! For three months it will mess up every route I travel. I will have to backtrack and detour. Five minute commutes will take ten to fifteen. What will my attitude be? (Hint: It’ll be my choice!)
Friends, God is a highway engineer. Do you trust that his “plans [are] for good and not for disaster”? Do you trust that our heavenly highway engineer wants to “give you a future and a hope” (and a safe intersection for years to come)? If you do, then part of the journey to freedom is learning to trust the heavenly engineer and embrace (or at least endure) the temporary inconveniences. Yes, part of the journey to freedom is strapping on your bike helmet and deciding to love the journey.
In Christ’s Love,
a guy who’s first great purchase
as teen was a bright metallic blue
Motobecane bicycle.
(I saved for a year and a half!
Then I loved all those glorious
journeys on “Frenchy”!)
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