This stubbornness sounds very bold. It's hard to imagine people being so reluctant to follow and listen to the Lord. But when we are distracted from the Lord are we not doing the same thing? Are not our ears deaf and eyes blind to the Lord when we simply put Him on hold while we get on with the rest of our lives? Whether intentional or just through neglect and laziness, when we turn off the Lord in our lives we are no better than these are.
We treat God as a last resort. We think, "I'll do it my way and if all else fails I'll call on God to bail me out." If we know that He is the answer, why do we wait? Are we embarrassed to call on Him? This reminds me of relationships that I have observed over the years between leaders and their subordinates. I have been on both ends of this myself. There is something unpleasant about having to report bad news. No one likes to tell their superior that things are not going so well. We come up with all sorts of schemes to convince ourselves that we can hide our problems and fix them before we have to come clean about them.
Our relationship with God is similar. We just hate to admit to Him that we can't do it on our own. Somehow we have come up with the notion that He wants us to be strong and independent, showing no weakness. Nothing could be further from the truth. God knows everything about us. He created us and follows our every move. How can we possibly think that we can keep anything from Him? He knows it before it's done. He is always holding out His hand for us because He knows that we need Him. He doesn't expect us to do it without Him. But we still refuse to listen; turn a stubborn shoulder; and stop our ears.
For whatever reasons that we have for not seeking the Lord in all things, we must reject them and turn to Him now and every day hereafter. We must have a sense of urgency about getting this right with the Lord. We must surrender our egos when He is concerned. We must not be afraid to share the bad news with the good. He already knows. He is simply waiting patiently for us to take His hand. He is always there for us. We are not alone. God expects us to trust Him with everything. He sees it not as weakness, but as strength. He wonders why His children are slow to come to Him. We must listen to His Spirit, "Render true judgments, [and] show kindness and mercy to one another."
I wrote this psalm many years ago in my attempt to understand the Lord in my life: “Jesus, on Your cross You have blessed me. God has lost all His memory, of my life lived in Sin. Oh Your death brings forgiveness and a promise I see, Yes Your light shines - New life begins. Save me, from my many temptations. When I look at my sad self, I see I've not begun, to turn to You, as I know that You want me to. Help me seek You, in my life.
Every time I turn to things that aren't desirable for me. Your angels fly over to watch and warn me, I know You won't ignore me. Your light is the light I must search for. I must look for the new life that brings peace and ends Sin. Oh Your light shines and shows me that my darkness will end, and eternal life begins.
For all my days in my old ways, You will not make me accountable. For when I seek You and turn my life on over, there's nothing insurmountable. You find it so easy to love me
even though I've strayed far from all the ways that You've shown. You have touched me and now I know the promise You keep. I will never be alone.”
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