Follow The Yellow Brick Road To Heaven

What does God want from me?

He wants for me to run the race He set for me. (bible verse) He wants for me to get to the destination. And to do that, I must not sin. I must be holy as He is holy (bible verse). I must be perfect. I must not sin.

In order for me not to sin, I first must know what sin means. One of unbelievers' biggest arguments against Christianity is that the bible was written by men. They say too much could have possibly have been lost in translation. They know that from Spanish to English and vice versa, much can be miscontrued. For example, in French, "Comment t'apelles tu?" means "What is your name?" But it's literally translated "How you name you?" So true, things can be lost in translation, but (bible verse) all scripture is given by inspiration of God. So do you really think God would let men mess up His scripture. He's God, you know?

So anyways the word "sin" comes from the Greek word "hamartia". The word "harmatia" means "to miss the mark." Way, way, way back in the day, they judges/"referees" at archer competitions would yell, "Sin!" when an archer missed the bulls-eye. Therefore, when you sin, you have simply missed the mark. The dartboard, the bulls-eye is set by God and Jesus. When someone asks if you are sinning, they should mean to ask, "Are you missing the mark God set for you?"

I think of driving down the street. There are lanes that you have to drive inside of in order to be in accordance with the law. You can't be driving in the middle lane AND the fast lane simultaneously by straddling on top the white dashed line in the street. You have to stay in one lane at a time (especially when there are other cars on the street with you and if you see a cop). I personally like to drive in both lanes at the same time because it's liberating (when no one else is around!)!

When I was a kid, I thought that if you had the car on cruise control that your car would set your car to certain speed AND align your car to go at perfect straight angle so that you could go to sleep at the wheel and not crash (if no one else was on the street and if it was a perfectly straight road). I now realize that it only sets a certain speed for you car. But I thought about how if you do not keep your steering wheel at a certain angle, you will eventually go off into another lane. If your front wheels are at a 45 degree angle, you will surely veer into the next lane soon. But if your car alignment (I guess that's the right word) is off by even ONE degree, you will slowly but surely go off into the next lane. You will miss the mark.

Likewise with archers and marksmen, if they do not keep that bow or weapon at a perfectly set angle, they will miss the mark. They will not get the bullseye or hit the target they want. God has a destination for each of us. If we are off by one degree, we will eventually miss the mark.

Also, your speed will determine how fast you get to the wrong destination. Because of the way some people live "life in the fast lane", they will end up in the wrong place quicker. I like to joke with my older sister about whether a romantic relationship she's in is going nowhere slowly. I tell her stuff like, "Michelle, it's okay if you're going nowhere quickly, or somewhere slowly or somewhere quickly. But this relationship is going nowhere slowly! Get out of it now!" If my doctor told me I was going to die a painfully slow agonizing death, I'd rather go quickly. Well when it comes to sinning or missing the mark, it's better to go nowhere slowly than quickly. By nowhere I mean hell. But it sucks either way, but if hell is your mark, you want to go slowly as possible. The sad thing is that many people who live life in the fast lane will go quickly. Most don't live long lives. Ask the members of The 27 Club, and ask murdered young gangbangers. They lived wild, rock and roll lives that quickly and sadly. I'm not sure how many were saved, but for those who were not, they went nowhere quickly. In Revelation, the bible says (bible verse) let those who are righteous be righteous, and let those who are wicked be wicked. I wonder is it because they need to get all the fun they want out of this life because in the next "life" there won't be any fun. No excessive drinking, no wild partying, no sleeping around, no fighting, no drugs, just no fun at all.

So walk the path God has for you. For those of you who fast, you know how hard it is when you are trying hard not to eat, but then everywhere you turn, there's a restaurant! When I fast, I almost forget sometimes when I go in the kitchen. I'll reach for food, and then the Holy Spirit will have me reminded of the fast. I'll be driving down the street, and it's as if the McDonald's, Checker's/Rally's, Krystal's, and Burger Kings are reaching for me saying, "Eat me! Eat me!" But I have to remember my committment to God to honor and seek Him and His blessings for the day through fasting and prayer. I have to literally keep my eyes to the car in front of me sometimes if I want to prevent myself from pulling into one of the drive-thru lanes. But at the end of every fast, I seem to always get what I prayed for! I'm not going to say it's the devil trying to sabotage my fast, but I know my flesh is so used to eating whenever or whatever so my flesh will try to act upon it's lusts for sugar and fast food.

I have to imagine myself walking a very narrow path (bible verse) sometimes. I imagine myself in the woods with this beaten path I have to keep my feet on. To the left, there's a cute guy who's my type (dark skin, dreds, nice teeth, tall) trying to holler at me. But I have to keep my eyes on the prize like Dorothy on the yellow brick road trying to get back home to Kansas. But I'm headed to my heavenly home with Jesus. And the yellow brick road is life. To my right is a party I want to go to. To my left is a girl talking smack to me that I might want to fight. To my right is a shot of Vodka. To my left is a blunt. There are temptations left and right on my yellow brick road. They are distractions - some demonic, some just my flesh's lusts. Either way, they will take me nowhere slowly or quickly.

Along the way, there are people who are strongly considering becoming Christians. They just need to see a good example. They saw so many others on the beaten path who were led astray by lusts. They saw some who almost made it to the end, and who backslid or who were given over to their reprobate mind (bible verse and definition). So they feel discouraged about the Christian walk. But when they see a young lady like me who can ignore the temptations, they feel all the more encouraged to join with me. I'm not just walking this path for myself. I'm walking it for others! It's my Christian duty.

Yes, sometimes I get off the path. Usually, I get off when I try to defend myself verbally. I don't like people talking crazy to me or disrespecting me. I have a temper at times. It's nowhere near like what it used to be. I let people get off with a lot before I say or do anything. Some I let off altogether without them even knowing they have offended me. But I need to remember to never snap on people because that causes me to get off the yellow brick road. Of course, the devil knows my smart mouth, so He'll plant people to try me and to see if I'll act right or act up. So I try to remember that I wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers (bible verse). I'm sure more than a few Xangans have seen me get out of character to put someone in their place. I apologize for getting off the road. Let me stay in my lane! Don't distract me!

So remember that the next time you hear sin(s), sinned, sinning, sinful, sinner(s), it is supposed to be referring to you not hitting the mark. God does ask us to be holy as He is and perfect (bible verses). He's not saying we won't make mistakes. He's not saying don't ever have a flaw, but He does want us to try to be sinless. I've heard that He wants us to sin less as opposed to being sinless, but I believe He wants us to hit the bullseye. We can't do it in our own flesh though; we need the help of the Holy Ghost to help us do right. You can't rely on flesh to help you not to do fleshly things. You can't rely on flesh to help you to do spiritual things. You have to rely on the spirit to do spiritual things. Confess of the times you missed the mark for God. And then ask the Holy Ghost to step your aim and to help you hit bullseye from now on out!