14 August 2008
Drifting Into Better Behavior
I’ve never witnessed this. Have you?
I’ve never seen someone living like a hellion completely turn it around simply because they started ‘drifting’ toward a better way to live and eventually arrived. No, it seems to me that it takes some kind of interference in order to get someone on the right course. Call it what you want.
- intervention
- restraint
- incarceration
- influence
- force
- grace
- love
- violence
- threats
- bribery
- temptation
- guilt
- gentleness
- trust
- shame
- honor
Good, bad, painful, ugly, sedating…but it’s going to take something!
The individual in question won’t simply drift to a better course.
And what is most strange about this phenomenon is that the principle only seems to apply to the higher road, the better course, the more honorable destination or godly path. You just don’t drift over to these.
But people drift over to poor choices and destructive paths all day every day. People drift off course little by little and sometimes in big chunks (more commonly seen when the storms off life are battering you). In fact, it’s so common I find I need certain guardrails in my life to prevent me from drifting off course. There are many of these.
- time with the Lord
- Bible reading
- prayer
- fasting
- exercise
- reading
- meditation
- worship
- serving
- giving
- praiseing God
- accountability
Sometimes drifting off course is just frustrating and requires only a minor course correction to get back on track. Other times it can be a complete and crushing disaster and there are even times when we go beyond course correction and it can cost us everything—even our very life.
If you’re a little off course right now (or even way off course) why don’t you start making the adjustments now?—Before it gets any worse.
And don’t wait for it to happen all on its own.
You never simply drift into better behavior.
2 Comments currently posted.
anonymous says:
Anonymous Two says:
Very well stated. When the winds of drifting arrive, often it is so gentle one does not recognize they are being blown off course. With each light breeze, one drifts further until one day they no longer can see the safe harbor of Jesus. One may think of what use to be, but hey, it can be fun living in the life of no accountability—for a while. If it were not fun in the beginning, why would one so carelessly let themselves drift? Why would one so easily be lead into a course that will eventfully lead to the full force hurricane winds of destruction?
The guardrails you mention are excellence life saving tools we can all use to help prevent the gentle drifting. Accountability to keep us on course is so much easier than fighting against the wind to return to the safe harbor of Jesus.
You are right on the money. It is very true in my own life. At first I thought I could just drift, but then I learned that I had to take the high road and make drastic changes. The changes are coming, slowly but surely, and each day I take another piece of the pie and work on it. Some poeple want answers now, but there are some that can’t be given now. It will take awhile. Until I get on the right path totally, I have found that I will not try to work on everything else. And if it wasn’t for grace and God, I would have a total disaster worse than the disaster already. But I have been given grace and forgiveness by God and for me, that will be enough.