Pratt: Seek to follow God's guidance in whatever circumstances
Just for my own entertainment, I am reading an abbreviated sort of book presentation titled “The Kings & Queens of England” by Ian Crofton. Abbreviated history is all that I have time to read because more pressing subjects also beckon.
This week, I pause at William I the Conqueror (1066 – 1087) simply because the Cowboys had lost their game and the other house occupant was headed for bed. It was time for me to start the nightly “pill drill,” the most difficult part of the day because I am told I have to keep to the schedule.
Reading messes with schedules. I think a few minutes have passed and behold, I check the clock and instead, I am 30 minutes off schedule. Right now for this very reason, I am working backward toward 11 p.m., so I can get to bed earlier than midnight.
It was a little easier to put down this book because I was feeling a bit sad at the brevity of life for royalty of this time. No wonder the late Queen Elizabeth II was such a treasure for the British monarchy.
It does seem that the more civilized we become, the more brutal our warfare grows. We may wake up one day to learn how very privileged we have been despite the challenges of peace-keeping in the more recent centuries.
Inevitably, it seems the “haves” are determined to become “have mores,” although to hear them pontificate, they only have the welfare of the “have-nots” with which to concern themselves.
Don't believe a word of it. Read history, not just the political versions “doctored” to make autocrats seem like heroes, but the real stories. No matter which people group we identify with, their stories are remarkably similar.
So are the results. We foolishly follow those who promise but never deliver and soon suffer the consequences of handing responsibility to the proverbial “let George do it” attitude.
Inevitably, our mental, physical and responsibility-adverse attitudes lead to no good end. The biblical stories illustrate clearly our propensity for choosing evil over good, but also show us a better way.
Even the best of the biblical heroes sometimes gave in to the worst of themselves, and learned their lessons the harder way, failing to follow God's commands. Although we may dismiss such stories as too old to teach modern sages anything, I dare us to study one or more of the ancient stories and claim we are doing any better today.
These writings were not given for our entertainment, but to encourage and help us find our way through the storms of life as we know it today.
But how can we apply something so old to such a “smart” and “advanced” civilization in which we live? Try it. Choose an Old Testament character and find yourself thinking and acting these many centuries later in similar circumstances. You have many more opportunities and access to knowledge than the ancients, even if they were early kings of England.
We all have to work within the parameters of our own possibilities, knowledge and talents. Let's give it a try without prejudice of birth or reputation. Quietly and humbly, let's seek to follow God's guidance in whatever circumstances surround us.
It is my conviction that when we think we are too smart to learn from our elders all that way back to beginnings, we are at our weakest, most vulnerable to embracing evil as a shortcut.
As usual, an old song pops into my mind and brings instant tears. It goes something like this: “It's not my brother nor my sister, but it's me, oh Lord, standing in the need of prayer.”
When you find the answers, I'd love to hear from you.
Beth Pratt retired as religion editor from the Avalanche-Journal after 25 years. You can email her at beth.pratt@cheerful.com.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Pratt: Seek to follow God's guidance in whatever circumstances
