June 10, 2008

Up the Down Escalator...

Years ago, in our early years of marriage, my younger brother would come and spend time at our home. He is six years younger than me. I was married at 18 ... so you get the idea. We were all young. Trips to the mall were quite an adventure...and I could count on one thing. Sometime before the night was over, my husband and my brother would take a run up the down escalator. I just resigned myself to the fact that I could not stop them even if I tried.

Fast forward many years. My son becomes a young teen... and the practice continues. (Do you see the common denominator here???) My husband and my son... running up the down escalator. They would patiently wait until it was empty, and then they would take off! Sometimes someone would get on the escalator before they accomplished their goal... But they would continue. You could hear them saying, "Excuse me, excuse me" but they would press on!

Several things could be observed: (I was the observer along with many others in the mall who would stop to watch)

• You have to keep moving.
• You will back up if you pause or slow down.
• You must move faster in your pursuit of going up...than the escalator is moving down.

I am currently reading a book, Crazy Love, by Francis Chan. Look at this quote from page 93:

"If life is a river, then pursuing Christ requires swimming upstream. When we stop swimming, or actively following Him, we automatically begin to be swept downstream.

Or, to use another metaphor more familiar to city people, we are on a never-ending downward escalator. In order to grow, we have to turn around and sprint up the escalator, putting up with perturbed looks from everyone else who is gradually moving downward."

Chan then says: "I believe that much of the American churchgoing population, while not specifically swimming downstream, is slowly floating away from Christ. It isn't a conscious choice, but it is nonetheless happening because little in their lives propels them towards Christ."

Now, he is not talking about a works based salvation. Salvation is by faith, not of works... but our faith will be evident by our works. We will see our faith in our works. James 2:17 ,"Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."

So the questions for today:

• Am I pursuing Christ?
• Do I let the grumblers/negative/complacent people that I come in contact with make me slow down? or quit?
• Does the race seem too hard? Have I lost my focus?
• Do I let the world I live in (the downstream of life)...set my pace... and keep me from pursuing Christ with all I am? Am I slowly floating away?
• What or who in my life propels me to my Savior?
• Do I need to re-adjust my priorities/my friends/my time so that nothing keeps me from my pursuit?

Philippians 3:12-14 : " Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. " NKJ

So, my encouragment for you today is to keep pursuing...
Up the down escalator...

Holding on...
DeeDee