Lessons from a Sand Trap

Trust Quartet sang at a Baptist church not far from my home this past weekend. Since it was close, I chose to drive rather than ride the bus. I met the group at a restaurant to eat before going to the church to set up and rehearse. Arriving at the church on Saturday afternoon, I watched as the bus made a wide turn in the parking lot. Suddenly the bus stopped. Something didn't look quite right. Ahhh ~ it had gotten stuck in the sand.

In case you aren't familiar with living close to the ocean, everything is quite sandy. No, really ~ it's SANDY!! The bus is quite heavy, and the soft sand was no match. Practically down to the axle, the bus was stuck and it wasn't going anywhere!

The pastor of the church called one of the church members who lived nearby and he brought over his back hoe. We watched as the back hoe pulled a little this way then a little more that way. Eventually, the back hoe pulled the bus out of the sandy trap and we were able to unload it and rehearse a bit before bedtime.

I didn't get much sleep Saturday night. I woke up thinking about how the bus got stuck in the sand. David wrote a Psalm similar to that. He wrote (40:1-3) how that God had rescued him from a life mired in the pit of clay. He spoke of how God had set him back on solid footing. God put a new song in his mouth, and as David sang that new song, people would see it and fear, and trust in the LORD.

In our concerts, we sing a song called Sinner Saved By Grace. That is all we are. Although I'm a Christ follower, and desire to imitate Him as closely as I can, I'm human, and I will fail from time to time. I'm not perfect, but thankfully, I am forgiven and seeking to live as close to what Christ desires as I can.

As we sang that song Sunday, I was thanking God for bringing me out of the miry pit of sinfulness. I'm thankful He has set me on solid footing, and following as closely as I can to Him, people can see Him through me. Isn't that what a Christ-follower should desire to do? Lead people by our example and spoken word to the Christ that longs to free them from the pitfalls in their lives?

Do your best today to find some way to communicate Christ's grace, forgiveness, holiness, and purity to someone you know. Then, pray that what you have said to that person will encourage them to seek to be closer to Christ.