Honest scales and balances are from the LORD; all the weights in the bag are of his making. Proverbs 16:11 (NIV)
Just when I think I have broken my bad habit of cramming too much into a small amount of time, I find myself careening around town rushing from one place to another. That was my situation recently when I raced from work to doctor to hairdresser to dinner. I was on my way to the gym crossing a long bridge when my frantic pace came to an abrupt halt. In the darkness, I saw too late some metal debris in the road. I unsuccessfully swerved to miss it. Immediately, my front driver’s tire shredded, and I had to react quickly to get us over into the emergency lane despite rush hour traffic. My son assured me that he could change the tire despite the scary location on the edge of a high bridge with lots of wind and vehicles flying beside us. He got all the tools and the spare out of the car, but when he went to place the jack under the front tire, he discovered fuel leaking all over the ground. The debris had punched a hole in my fuel tank. Because of the new danger and because it was leaking into the water below, we called 911. Soon, two fire trucks, a haz mat team, an ambulance and a road ranger surrounded us. The temperature was dropping quickly, and it was very cold. My son, who proved to be great help in an emergency, asked if there was a place I could go to get warm, and the road ranger said that I could wait in his big truck. It was also parked in the emergency lane right next to the edge of the bridge. As I tried to get around the truck’s mirror and ease open the door so it did not hit the concrete barrier, I lost my balance and almost fell over the wall into the bay. My misstep scared both the road ranger and me, and as I finally made it into his truck, I realized that I was shaking with fear. The crisis caused by the broken car had not upset me as much as the realization that I might have lost my life in the process of seeking shelter from the wind. Not only was my balance poor as I tried to get into the truck, but I was lacking balance in my life that night as I had once again planned too much to do. I recently discovered this verse and it means more to me than the simple image of a measuring scale. It tells me that if I honestly want to keep my life in check, I must submit all my activities and choices to God. He weighs them in accordance with His will for me and it is He that knows how much or how little is appropriate for me in this season of my life. When my life balances with the weights in His bag, then, and only them can I be steady and sure.
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