SOBRIETY CHECK POINTS

A flashing light up ahead....

Law enforcement sets them up around holidays intending to catch substance abuse drivers. Most of us don't mind such traffic delays since they help to prevent accidents.

Life also has sobriety check points. They are reality checks. God may be behind them working out His loving purposes for our good.

It might be the sudden death of a loved one; we become acutely aware of our own mortality. Or a doctor's serious prognosis; life as we have known it will drastically change. Perhaps a simple notice in our mailbox that we have arrived at the AARP age; it's time to reshuffle our dreams and goals. The graduation of a child—or a wedding—or a milestone birthday. Maybe a near accident that leaves us shaken. The deterioration of our health or becoming aware of the diminishing of our mental powers. Or a hard look in the mirror. A catastrophic storm that leaves our prized possessions in shambles. A poor investment or a financial crash that wipes out our life savings; we face a new normal. A spouse suddenly deserts the family. A job loss. Simply stepping on the bathroom scale may be a sobering shock for some. The list of potential taps on the shoulder is long and unique to each of us.

Without these sobriety check points in life we tend to drift along. As negative as they may seem, they force us to face reality and may give us time to correct our course. “So teach us to number our days that we may present to Thee [Lord] a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

Tap on the Shoulder

God tapped me on the shoulder.

Busy, distracted, I postponed:

“Wait a minute.”

Time slipped by.

Detoured by trivial, temporal tasks

I deferred: “Later.”

Time dashed by.

Disguised as urgency

I mistook activity as priority

but it was not of the essence

of eternity.

I put God off again:

“Another time.” But

time flew by.

Dismayed with life's futility

distraught by mundane toil

distressed by swiftly fleeting days

I realized then

that time was running out.

Finally, God got my attention

by reminding me

through my fragility

of my own mortality

and dispensability.

God pursues me

relentlessly and lovingly

through blessing me generously

or through affliction and adversity

however necessary

to turn my heart

to Eternity.