Consider Your Ways
Consider Your Ways
Haggai 1:5 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Give careful thought to your ways.”
Dear Kids,
Why do we do what we do? In the past two days, I have had reminders of how important it is to consider your ways. It is unprofitable and sometimes downright dangerous to go through life without taking the time to exam the things we do and think.
I remember hearing the story of a woman who would always cut off the end of a ham roast before baking it in the oven. One day her daughter asked why she did this. She thought for a minute and finally replied, “I do it because that is what my mother always did.”
Her daughter’s question got her wondering about this family custom, so she asked her mother the purpose of cutting off the end of the ham. The answer was a complete surprise. The older lady said, “I cut the end from the ham because my roaster was never big enough to fit the whole thing.”
A whole lifetime of ham ends was wasted simply because no one stopped to consider the reason behind the action.
God, through the prophet Haggai, told the children of Israel to give careful thought to their ways. They had fallen into the same habits that often beset us – filling all their time with daily routines without taking the time to consider the things of God.
The temple of God was in ruin but no one had time to give or money to spare to put it in order. They didn’t come to the point of stopping the daily grind long enough to consider their relationship with the Lord.
They worked hard to plant their fields but harvested very little. They spent hours preparing and eating meals but never had enough. They drank but never had their fill. They put on clothes but were never warm. They earned wages that disappeared quickly. No matter how hard they tried, they could not fulfill their desires.
If they had stopped to consider why these things were happening, they would have realized that God had removed His blessings to cause them to think about Him. He wanted to compel them to make their relationship with Him their most important priority. He wanted them to restore His temple so that He could take pleasure in it and be honored in the way He deserved. Who knows how many generations of families had gone through the daily motions of existence without taking care of the most important thing? Throughout the years the temple, the symbol of God’s presence, crumbled while life went on as usual.
Don’t we do this today? We get so busy with the routines of life – often not even considering why we do what we do. We waste so much time and effort on trivial things when God is waiting for us to give Him the time and devotion that He is due.
It’s time to think about why we do what we do. Spend some time this week asking God to show you some areas in which you need to consider your ways. In doing so you may just save yourself a lot of trouble and renew your relationship with God.
Love,
Mama