A Deliberate Asking...

As I sit in the quietness of our home...
Preparing for a new day...
Recognizing things that desperately need my attention...

God reminds me to be still & know that HE IS...

Life has a way of getting out of control...
We go through the motions...
We do what must be done...

We flit from this decision...
To that decision...
But do we stop & ask God what He thinks?

A deliberate asking?

I had the opportunity to share with an individual the other day that when it comes down to the brass tacks of life:
Making choices...
Settling on decisions...
Planning out courses...
Lining up our days...
God must be the center.

If we ever want peace & contentment & joy, 

God simply must be at the center.

Our lives are much like a bicycle tire...
The hub is what secures the spokes.

- hub -

the central part of a wheel, as that part into which the spokes are inserted

a center around which other things revolve or from which they radiate

The hub...
A center around which other things revolve or from which they radiate...

How would a bicycle tire function if the hub was missing...

Leaving the spokes to suspend freely?

Or if the hub was present but the spokes weren't attached?

As you can imagine, it would be utter disaster for the person riding the bicycle.

Would you be willing to jump on a bike in such a condition?
Would you even notice the abnormality?
Or would you be in such a hurry that you'd hop on without recognizing the problem?

Isn't that what we do when we make decisions without God's direction...
Consent...
Guidance...
Authority...
Leadership...

We jump on a bicycle whose spokes aren't attached to the hub...

Spend money on that purchase.
Agree to this commitment.
Sign that contract.
Invest time in this matter.
Focus our attention on that situation.

Did we factor God into any of those equations?
Or did we simply feel it our "right" to make those decisions without His sovereignty?

Do we even stop to think about it?

To be still and to know that HE is GOD.

And that He knows what is good...
And best...
And perfect...

Spokes...
Our lives are full of spokes...

Commitments...
Expenditures...
Decisions...
Choices...
Priorities...

Spoke-by-spoke our bicycle tire is comprised...

Money...
Time...
Food...
Clothing...
Career...

Spoke-by-spoke, our life is encompassed...

What we allow in...
What we dole out...

Do we even stop to think about it?

And many times our attention is so consumed with the spokes...

That we fail to acknowledge the Hub...

The One who holds it all together.

We've got it all figured out.
No help is needed here.
The route is planned.
Decisions are made.
It's all good...

Until we end up stranded...
Or crash.

And then what?

The Hub of our lives gently whispers...

"Be still and know who I am..."

What does your tire of life look like when you line it up to this?

Hub - Jesus Christ

Spokes - what your life is comprised/made up of

Tire - your life as a whole

Is the Hub in His rightful place?

In what condition are the tires your life?
Are the spokes firmly plugged in to the Hub?
Or are they aimlessly dangling?

Think about that for a bit & finish this next sentence...

Right now, mine appears as...

Simply put, Jesus wants to be at the center of it all...