In need of an Alignment

Awhile back I noticed that the tires on my wife's car wearing down in a weird pattern.  Bald in one place and fine tread in another on the same side of the tire.  After some time researching online I decided I needed to take it to the local shop and see if they could correct the issue.  I watched as the mechanic put the car up on the lift and then stuck these funny Austin Powers type lasers to the wheels and then checked his computer.  Sure enough the front tires were out of alignment.
Think about it this way.  Wherever I point my toes is the direction my feet take me.  To the left, I head to the left.  Point them right and I begin to move right.  But if my left foot was facing left and my right foot was facing right I would be hard to walk a straight line.  The left side of my body would want to track left and the right, right - I'd be heading in two different directions at the same time!

David made a similar discovery about his life in Psalm 86.  He prays, "train me God to walk straight; then I'll follow Your path..."  It's important to to walk straight if you want to follow God.  But it's so easy to get sidetracked in your life and pulled in different directions.  Children, Spouse, School, Career these can begin to take us off in different directions, maybe not completely at first, just pulling you away.  It becomes harder to find the time to get to church, read your Bible or pray because there are so many other things that are fighting for your attention and direction.  And being pulled in two different directions causes problems, life gets bumpy and rough.  It becomes increasingly difficult to stay on the road.  And if you don't get that spiritual alignment fixed you're headed for a blow out!

That's what the car was doing, fighting itself as we tried to drive straight down the road, each tire trying to pull the whole car in the direction it was pointing.  It was drivable but the car shook a lot and would have eventually worn clear through the tires perhaps causing a blowout and maybe an accident affecting others as well!

So David prays that he would walk straight and the way he is able to do that comes from the second part of his prayer, "put me together, one heart, one mind; then undivided I'll worship You..." That's what church, bible reading and prayer are supposed to do, put lasers on our life to make sure that everything is lined up, heart and mind, so that your whole body tracks together to keep you on the path God has laid out for you.

Maybe it's time for a spiritual tune up in your life.  Perhaps you've already noticed that things are getting worn and your life is getting rough.  It's time to get things lined up and tracking together.  Get your heart and mind squarely focused on God and His will for your life and things will start to move smoother for you and you may even avoid that spiritual blowout.

Is God Hidden in YOUR Hands?

So I'm reading in Psalm 77 the other day and I'm thinking to myself, I know EXACTLY how this guy feels!  He says, "my life was an open wound that wouldn't heal... my friends said, 'everything will be alright!' I didn't believe a word they said."  He goes on to talk about how he can't sleep, he's up all night playing music but it doesn't help... He wonders if God has gone off and left and in pity says, "Just my luck... the High God goes out of business the moment I need Him!"
Come on now, surely you've felt this way. You've prayed and prayed and no answer has come.  You're spinning your wheels and getting nowhere.  Do I turn right... or left... or keep right on going this way, God?  But no direction is clear to you.  It is so depressing, I know, I've been there too!  Come on God!  Hear me!  Answer me!  Show me!  Lead me!  I've yelled it all to a silent sky.  No voice.  No piercing light from heaven showing me the path.
The writer of this Psalm though tells us how he got through this major pity episode.  "Once again I'll go over what God has done, lay out on the table the ancient wonders; I'll ponder all the things You've accomplished and give a long, loving look at your acts."
And what happens when he does this?  He remembers!  Wow God!  When I look back on what You have done I am amazed at Your hand, ever-present in all my life's ups and downs!  There is no one like You who controls the natural and supernatural for the favor of your chosen people!  You alone are God and there is none like You!
But this post is not about pity parties and God's presence in our lives.  You thought it was?  Weird.
No, this post is about HOW God works and reveals Himself in the natural world and how YOU and I get to be a part of His incredible plan.
verses 19 and 20 tell an incredible story of God's presence... "You strode right through ocean, walked straight through roaring ocean, but NOBODY saw you come and go.  Hidden in the hands of Moses and Aaron, You led your people like a flock of sheep."
God's incredible power and plan and presence is hidden in the hands of those who follow Him completely.  Amazing.  I've heard it said that we, as Christians, are to be the hands and feet of Christ... but this is so much more powerful to me.  God - in all His power and majesty to work in the lives of people - is hidden in the hands of a few.  What we say to people.  What we do for them.  How we treat them, whether grocery store clerk, tire repair man or bank president our Mighty and Awesome God can be hidden in our hands.  Seen only with reflection and time and the Spirit.  How did you treat those around you today?  Was God hidden in your hands?
We have an obligation to the Creator of the world and Savior of our souls to use our lives as walking billboards for His glory - God might just be hiding in your hands to reveal Himself to someone today.  Will they see Him?