That Little Sneaky Path to a Bad Place
by Sharon Jaynes
Today’s Truth
He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake (Psalm 23:3, NKJV).
Friend to Friend
One Sunday my pastor had to do some housekeepin’ fussin’ at our congregation before he started his sermon. It was a “visitors, close your ears” moment as Jimmy interrupted the service for an important message from our neighbors.
See, right beside our church property is a city park. On Sundays, when our parking lot is full, we tend to use the city park lot for our overflow parking. The only problem is that the folks going to the city park don’t like the fact that those daggum CHURCH people are taking their parking spaces.
It is not nice of us. Really. I’m sorry. I’ve done it, too.
And while our sweet pastor calmly asked the congregation, once again, to STOP PARKING IN THE CITY PARK PARKING LOT (he didn’t yell, but I bet he wanted to), folks still do it. As soon as Jimmy finished his announcement and began his sermon, God had a sermon just for me. He wasn’t finished with me and the forbidden parking lot issue. That’s what happens when you make a path or keep a path open, He seemed to say, “You’re going to walk down it eventually.”
See, while we have been warned, scolded, and pleaded with not to park next door, there is this nice little path through the bushes from the city park’s parking lot to our church’s parking lot. The bushes are trimmed on both sides, cobblestones are succinctly placed, and a nice little bit of concrete forms a gently curving sidewalk. Someone keeps the bushes clipped and the grass maintained. The breezeway almost beckons us (me) to break the rules.
Now let’s go down a different path. Let’s call the path sin. Let’s say that you have decided that once and for all you are not going to park yourself in the parking lot of a particular sin.
There are hundreds of vices you could put in that sentence. But then there’s a nicely groomed little path that you’ve kept open…just in case. You wouldn’t call it “just in case.” You wouldn’t say it out loud.
The paths beckon you. And as long as you keep the breezeways open, you’ll probably breeze right through them… eventually.
The answer? Remove the path. Put up a gateless fence.
Make the path to temptation impassable, implausible, and impossible to take, and put up a gateless fence instead.
Jesus said, “If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out” (Matthew 5:29 NKJV). That is pretty dramatic. I’m not telling you to pluck out your eye, and I’m not sure that’s what Jesus was saying either. But He was telling us to remove the cause of the temptation.
Remove the path. Put up a fence.
So here’s my question: Do you need to put up a fence where you now have a path?
Let’s Pray
Heavenly Father, thank You for always giving me a way of escape. Forgive me for not always taking it. Help me to keep my resolve to put up a fence and close the paths to areas of my life that I have left open to sin.
Heavenly Father, thank You for always giving me a way of escape. Forgive me for not always taking it. Help me to keep my resolve to put up a fence and close the paths to areas of my life that I have left open to sin.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
I’m erecting a fence the moment I press the send button on this devotion. Because now that I’ve told you about my little parking lot dilemma, I will never park in the city park’s lot again. Just telling you about it holds me accountable.
And maybe, just maybe, I’ve hit on a way for you to begin placing fences where those paths have been… tell someone, and ask her to hold you accountable.
Go back and look at today’s truth. What do you think it means “for His name’s sake?”
I’ve been pondering that. Here’s how the New Living Version translates it. “He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.”
Are you willing to honor God’s name today by putting up a fence and avoiding that tempting path? If so, tell GOD, “I’m shutting down the path.”
Today's Devotional Sponsor:
What It Means to Walk with God
He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. (1 John 2:6)
I have heard that if you walk three times a day at a brisk pace, it can help keep you in good shape physically. You won’t move as quickly as you move when you are running. Walking is a regulated motion, but as you do it, you make progress. You move forward gradually.
If we want to abide in Jesus, we must walk as He walked. The Bible says, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked” (1 John 2:6).
Walking with God is a picture the Bible often uses to describe the Christian life. Galatians 5:16 says, “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Colossians 2:6 tells us, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” And in Micah 6:8 we read, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
Again and again the Bible tells us that we need to walk with God. It’s something we need to commit ourselves to. An interesting verse in Amos 3 gives us an important aspect of walking with God: “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (verse 3).
In the original language, the term together carries the concept of two people moving as a single unit. To walk with God means moving together as a single unit. We are united toward the same goal. We are putting our strength toward the same end. We are moving together at the same pace.
To walk with God means that we are moving in harmony with Him. We are staying close to Him. It is the same concept as abiding.
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version.
Copyright © 2017 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
From Pastor Greg Laurie
amazing peach cobbler
- prep time: 15 minutes
- cook time: 45 minutes
- total time: 1 hour
- yield: 8 servings
DESCRIPTION
I have tried so many peach cobbler recipes and this is by far my favorite! Best summer dessert ever! Made with fresh peaches, sugar, and a topping that bakes like slightly underbaked cookie dough, with crunchy sugar broiled on top.
INGREDIENTS
Peach Filling- 4 large fresh peaches, sliced
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup Land O Lakes® Butter, melted
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- a pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup turbinado sugar or Raw Sugar (optional, but really nice)
- whipped cream or ice cream for serving
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Smear the bottom of 9×13 pan with a little bit of butter. Add peaches and sugar, and mix directly in the pan.
- Mix the butter, sugar, vanilla, flour, baking powder, and salt until a cookie-dough-like batter forms.
- Place scoops of the mixture over the top of the peaches. Spread with a spoon or with your fingers – no need for perfection here.
- Bake for 25 minutes. At this point it should be juicy and bubbly around the sides – if not, see notes.
- Sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar. Bake another 10 minutes and then finish with a few minutes under the broiler (475-ish) for a few minutes to get it golden brown and slightly crunchy on top.
- For the best saucy results, let it stand for 20-30 minutes before serving. But good luck with that.
NOTES
If it’s not saucy and bubbling after 25 minutes of baking, it’s probably because your peaches are a tad on the firm / dry side. I found that pouring two tablespoons of melted butter over the peaches at this point was helpful in coaxing some “juiciness” out of the peaches during that last chunk of bake time.
I did not peel the peaches because I cannot be bothered to peel a perfectly good peach. But if the texture or color of the peels bothers you, you can peel them.
I have made this with frozen peaches and it was great. It’s less jammy, since the frozen peaches tend to be firmer and hold their shape a little more, but it’s pretty ideal when you don’t have access to fresh, ripe peaches. Just dump the frozen peaches in the baking dish and pop them in the oven while you mix up your topping. Once you’re done mixing the topping, the peaches should be thawed out. Drain them off, return to pan, and mix with sugar, and you’re in business.
When slicing the peaches, I prefer to slice them pretty thinly so they lay on top of each other more evenly and get that nice thick, jammy consistency.
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Death and Taxes
One Liner Jokes
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But at least death doesn't get worse every year!
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