| Proverbs 14:12 -“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” |
Many things appear easy.
Throwing a ball, but look at what happens to celebrities who throw out first pitchs at baseball games.
The child’s challenge of rubbing your stomach while patting your head but doing so makes you look out of control.
So let me ask you, “can you walk a straight line?”
Sounds easy enough.
In 2009, the Max Planck Institute did that same experiment.
They asked several to go out in the woods and walk in a straight line.
The researchers watched and discovered not one person could walk in a straight line. In fact, instead of a line, they walked in circles.
The reasons is we need markers to tell us both distance and direction. Without the markers, and left on our own, we wander.
That explains why people tend to get lost in forests. They have nothing to guide them.
So how do we walk “the straight and narrow?” It seems we need the same thing.
We need something to tell us what to do.
Solomon observed human behavior.
I suspect he watched many wander in a spiritual circle thinking they were going in the right direction.
He watched and then counseled: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” (Proverbs 14:12, ESV)
When we cut loose the guidance God provides, we have no map, no compass, no reference. And when left to our own devices, we cannot direct our own steps.
We always need help.
Take a moment to orient yourself. Are you walking in a circle and not making progress? Perhaps it is time to look for God’s landmarks.
- Robert G. Taylor
robertgtaylor.com
