The Road Ahead - Martin Wiles

Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go.” Isaiah 30:21 NLT

The road ahead often winds and maneuvers in ways we could never imagine. 

My wife and I were at a retreat in the Tennessee mountains. One morning when we had free time, I invited her to hike on a nearby trail. Moderate in intensity, the trail meandered by farm sites hundreds of years old and through panoramic views of the numerous wildflowers growing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As we trudged along, my wife snapped a picture and said, “Look at the road ahead.” 

Isaiah reminded the people of God’s road before them and how often they had chosen their own roads. Following God’s road would lead to his blessings, but they often chose the more heavily traveled road—the road of disobedience. 

God’s road often has steep inclines. I’ve been on many mountain trails where I had to stop numerous times before reaching the top. Only with periodic rest stops and by guzzling fluids did I finally reach the pinnacle. However, as my wife and I discovered, what goes up must come down. Our return hike was downhill the entire way. 

The road ahead contains unforeseen elements. I had hiked this particular trail sixteen years ago and remembered only scattered images of interesting things along the way to the waterfall at the end. Walking the trail now was like experiencing a new adventure as I anticipated what was next. God doesn’t give us a point-by-point map of where his road will take us—only the assurance he’ll be with us as we travel. 

God’s road is sometimes uneven. This trail was. Some places were flat, but rocks, roots, and washed-out gullies dotted other spots. We slowed down when we approached these areas and chose our steps carefully. Trials and tribulations are parcel to life—some placed there by God to challenge and increase our faith. In those times, we need God’s guidance even more. 

Taking God’s road also puts us in touch with fellow travelers. Porter’s Creek Trail is a popular hiking area because of the plethora of wildflowers. Hundreds of people preceded and followed us. Whatever road God leads us down, he’ll always provide fellow travelers to help us make the journey. 

Regardless of your road, God and others walk beside you. 

Father, I ask you to guide me as I walk the road through the valley, up and over the mountain, and through the wilderness.

I invite you to try my book Grits, Grace, and Grands. If you have grands, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

The Art of Contentment - Martin Wiles

I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content. Philippians 4:11 NKJV

Four months and several medications later, my wife finally discovered the art of contentment.

A casual walk around a local college’s track with our grandson brought on what she hadn’t been troubled with in quite some time: PVCs (premature ventricular contractions). A visit to the doctor and an EKG revealed numerous PVCs. The doctor issued several options: take medicine, have an ablation, implant a pacemaker, or do nothing and risk weakened heart muscles. We chose medicine, but several months and several medicines later, the doctor informed us the medicine route wasn’t working.

After the four-hour surgical procedure was over, the doctor entered the room. The areas where the PVCs occurred were extensive. He got most of them, but some lay in risky areas. Hopefully, he burned enough to give her relief. As the nurses rolled her back into the room and hooked up the blood pressure and pulse monitors, we anxiously awaited the first reading. Contentment came when we saw the first reading. Blood pressure was good, and her pulse rose to a higher range. 

Paul learned the art of contentment over a lifetime of serving Christ. He often endured unpleasant circumstances—some even life-threatening—but as he neared the end of his life, he confessed he had reached his contentment goal.

I can’t say I’ve reached the pinnacle Paul had, but I’m learning. Life experiences continually remind me God has my circumstances under control. I couldn’t fix my wife’s heart problems any more than I could a precarious financial situation. Or a broken relationship. Or an unwanted employment termination. What I can do is trust the One who can.

My wife and I have also learned contentment comes from laughing through difficult times. If we can’t fix them, we might as well laugh at them. Laughter is good medicine and doesn’t diminish our trust in God. Instead, it reflects the joy in our souls and our faith that God will bring good out of all situations.

Take somemeasured steps to help you learn the art of contentment.

Tweetable: Have you learned the art of contentment? 

Thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram. Help us spread God's encouragement through His Love Lines.

In or Out of Control - Martin Wiles

Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes. Psalm 115:3 NLT

“I like to be in control,” my wife smirked.

The battery-operated toothbrush had lain on the bathroom counter for a week before I asked her where she got it from. By this time, it had either collected dust or come in its present condition when the company shipped it to my wife.

Thinking she had spent money on something we didn’t have extra funds for, I questioned her about the purchase. She had ordered it from a website she does business with where she can buy things for a dollar. I couldn’t argue with a dollar purchase, especially since I know how much those type of toothbrushes cost.

“Why haven’t you opened the package and used the brush?” I finally asked after watching the thing lie around for a week.

The next day, she did. After using her new brush once, she informed me she didn’t like it and wouldn’t be using it again. When I asked why, I got the smirk and the answer. She couldn’t control her toothbrush; the batteries controlled it. All she could do was let the bristles circulate over her teeth. She liked to put pressure on her teeth. She couldn’t with this toothbrush.

According to the psalmist, God is like the battery-operated toothbrush. Nothing controls Him. He does as He wishes.

The psalmist’s statement comforts me when I understand everything else the Bible says about God. He is holy, kind, loving, and fair. When I worship a God such as that, I’m okay with Him doing what He wants when He wants. If He were a different kind of deity, I might not relish His rule.

When it comes to controlling, I’ve discovered I can only control one person: me. I have no power over what others do—even if I’m their manager or supervisor. Perhaps I can control how they act while they are under my watch, but I can’t control what they do at other times or even what they’re thinking while they are under my supervision.

If we try to do what only God can do, we get disappointed and depressed. Life will not always go as we plan. When things are out of our hands—and we don’t trust God to control them—we’ll jump into bed with misery. And on the heels of unending misery comes depression.

We can also run off friends. No one wants to hang around with a control freak. And chances are, we’ll have a bad attitude to boot. Lack of friends, depression, and disappointment can lead to that. To reverse it, we must reverse our attempts to control.

Let go of the struggle to control and let God take His rightful position. This is the only way to enjoy the peace Jesus gives.

Prayer: Father, prompt us to relinquish control of our lives to You, and only You.

Tweetable: Are you in or out of control? 

Thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram. Help us spread God's encouragement through His Love Lines.

Be Happy with the Happy - Martin Wiles

Welcome to Meandering Monday where we meander back in time to a previously published devotion. 

Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Romans 12:15 NLT

Other’s happiness can be the occasion in which selfishness grows.

I read the text: “I just won an iPad.”

My wife was attending a continuing education conference. Several drawings for giveaways peppered the schedule—one of which was for an iPad. And not a cheap one.

When the announcer called the winning ticket, my wife barely looked—having never won anything. That’s when her neighbor said, “They are calling your number.” She had won the iPad.

Loving technology better than she, I hoped her next text would read, “I’ll give it to you. I know how much you’ve wanted one.” But it didn’t. She kept the iPad for herself…and later the grandkids. Instead of rejoicing over her win, I nestled envy in my heart. She had what I wanted.

My selfishness countered my wife’s excitement over her new toy. Why hadn’t this happened to me? I used a computer and other tech tools twice as much as she did. I couldn’t rejoice because the green-eyed monster of envy ate at my heart. She had what I wanted. And although she let me use her toy, it wasn’t mine.

If I’m to rejoice with others who rejoice, I must learn to be happy and content with what God gives me, as well as when He gives it. He knows what I can handle before pride and selfishness creep in. Someone will always have more than I do, but if I have what God desires me to have, that’s all I need.

Rather than envying what others have—whether possessions or opportunities—we need to rejoice over what God is doing in other’s lives. He gives what aligns with His plans for their life, and He does the same for us.

A part of interacting with others also includes weeping when they weep. Entering their circumstances. Attempting to feel what they’re feeling. Letting their hurts become mine. When I do this, I am loving my neighbor as I do myself.

What attitude do you need to change so you can rejoice with those who rejoice?

Prayer: God of love and light, teach us to rejoice with others and to be content with what You entrust to us.

Tweetable: What keeps you from rejoicing with others? 

Thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram. Help us spread God's encouragement through His Love Lines.