Following The Directions

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/ypyvb7

How good are you at following directions? If someone were to tell you how to drive from your house to another destination, can you follow those directions?

Most of us get pretty good at following directions, especially when we are lost or really need to rely on them. However, at times, we can be guilty of discarding directions if we think we know something better or different.

I’ll never forget my fifth grade teacher. She was fresh out of college and was still developing her style of teaching. So her style might vary from day to day until she found what worked best.

Mostly her classes were very challenging, but at times they were not. Some days the pace of teaching was just too slow for a few of us and as I recall we began to find other things to entertain us while the teaching was ongoing.

In fact we began having races to see who could finish the assignments or tests first. In our rush to complete our work we often made simple mistakes due to our carelessness. This did not please our teacher.

A pattern began to develop of not following directions completely and the teacher knew that she had to do something to regain control of her class. So, at the next opportunity for a test she made her move.

After lecturing us for several days on the importance of always following directions she handed out these tests. These one page tests had questions on both sides of the paper. At the top in all capital letters was the main instruction, “PLEASE READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS THOROUGHLY BEFORE TAKING THIS TEST!”

Too bad we didn’t do that! As soon as we received our papers the race was on to see who could finish first.

The first several lines were easy to do but didn’t make much sense. Draw a triangle at the bottom left side of the page. Circle all words that begin with a vowel in this sentence. Underline the verb in another sentence.

The same kinds of instructions filled that first page and continued on to the next. Many of us were busily marking our papers and being careful to do everything that we were instructed to do, no matter how silly it appeared.

Then came the last line of the test. Here is what it said. “Now that you have read all instructions THOROUGHLY before taking this test, simply put your name at the top of the paper and turn it in. Do not make any other marks on this paper.”

Ouch! She had us. In our rush to do what we thought was right we ignored the very first and most important instruction. Read ALL instructions before taking the test.

That’s the only zero I ever received in my life on an exam. I’ll never forget it.

God gave specific instructions to the children of Israel before they went to conquer the Promised Land. But they didn’t follow it. Notice the instructions here in Deuteronomy 12:29-32.

When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.

John echoes this last line in the last chapter of Revelation. God’s instructions: be careful to observe what He teaches; don’t add to His word or take away from His word. Just read carefully and follow the directions.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we fight the urge to do what we think is best instead of following God’s instructions for us. May we learn from the examples of others and live our lives in full subjection to our Creator.

Our thought for the day: “God judges a man not by the point he has reached, but by the way he is facing; not be distance, but by direction.”

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.