"What Happened?: Neglect!"

Sometimes life can be complicated. At times our actions/reactions just don’t make any sense. No matter how much we contemplate some of life’s issues, there are some instances we label as open-ended conclusions. Simply put, some issues leave us wondering what happened? I imagine all of us have pondered this question.

Consider the following. It's possible you haven't had this experience but over the years I have noticed that my weight continues to rise; my waistline expands and some of my clothes fit me a lot snugger than when I originally purchased them.  Simultaneously, I eat more and either never exercise or at best rarely exercise. Yet, with each successful addition of pounds and inches to my waistline; I find myself saying I don’t understand. Often asking myself and my wife, what happened?

Similar circumstances occur in our spiritual journey. We travel through life as if we are in a high speed chase; frantically attempting to navigate lines only to move toward dead end finishes.  Zooming round and round with NASCAR precision we slowly discover our victorious less filled lapses. When we remain still long enough, we begin to feel our inner selves longing for an ignition; rather than investigate, we hurry to entertain matters which are insignificantly important. We quickly engage ourselves in distractions disguised as work with uttermost consequence. Thus, Empty in the morning, we arise. Empty in the evening, we sleep. With each addition of distractions, we multiply our inaction decreasing the possibility of the Holy Spirit’s attraction! At our unfinished line, we find ourselves asking, what happened?

As I pulled the weeds from my flower beds and trimmed the bushes, what happened was no longer the question. I realized the excess weight, the victorious less life, the weed infested flower bed and wildly grown bushes share a common foe: neglect. Webster’s dictionary defines neglect – to leave undone or unattended to, especially through carelessness. Yes, neglect is a fitting description for that unkempt flower bed. Again neglect aptly defines the expansion of my waistline. And neglect certainly characterizes an empty, powerless spiritual life.

The Good News is every circumstance of neglect can be overcome with attention. Last week my flower beds were unruly, this week they are clear and clean and the bushes neatly trimmed. With attention to what I eat and intentionally exercising, I will experience a decrease in my weight and waistline.

Attention too is the remedy for us when we fall into a spiritual malaise. If we are to be spirit-filled and led by Jesus’ teaching, we must give attention and time to studying the Bible, praying and serving. II Timothy 2:15 describes the necessity of and outcomes of attention:

“Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval.

Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed

and who correctly explains the word of truth”.

Let us work and give attention to every aspect of our lives, so that we need not ask the question what happened, nor be ashamed of our health, our physical appearance, our dwelling place and most importantly with our relationship with God.

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Much Love,

Marcus J. Singleton
Lead Pastor
Living Faith Community

Hoover, AL

Our Vision: "A diverse community of faith; inspired by the love of Jesus, committed to becoming and making disciples".