“As a prisoner of the Lord, I beg you to live in a way that is worthy of the people God has chosen to be his own. Always be humble and gentle. Patiently put up with each other and love each other. Try your best to let God’s Spirit keep your hearts united. Do this by living at peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3 Contemporary English Version)
Looking out the kitchen window and staring at a man-made lake behind my house, as I was drinking my “must have” cup of coffee, I saw a line of ducks swimming in a straight, perfect order as if in a unit of well-trained unit of soldiers. Actually, they could have been Canadian geese. But I just call them ducks. They were floating effortlessly in a straight line, one duck after the other, and the line did not seem like it would ever end. The sight kept me mesmerized for a moment, for there was not one duck that got out of order.
While this captivating sight reminded me of the time when as a child, our family, during a period in life when we did not have a car, walked to church some 8-9 blocks away. Now get this! We always walked in the same order as if we had a car. Mom and Dad led the way. The younger children were right behind them and my older brother and me were bringing up the rear. Not one of us, like the ducks got out of order.
That reminder of times past is being used today, simply to admonish you to get your “ducks” in order; get the people in your house in order, ready to head to church to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth this morning, in an orderly way. So, consider the admonishing done. However, don’t think you are done reading. Please continue.
As I looked at the ducks in order, I also thought about how we should order our Christian character from a personal perspective, adding one quality after the other, getting our “ducks in order” so as to speak, making us better representatives of Christ. Think about that yourself, on your way to the house of the Lord this morning. Be blessed!
“Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust. So don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can’t see what’s right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.” (2 Peter 1:3-9 The Message Bible)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King