My lot in life.....I’m just saying

Have you ever said a word over and over again until it sounded ridiculous or strange? “Lot” is a word like that. You can have a lot. Stand in a lot. You can drive a lot. Climb a lot. Cry a lot. Take a lot. Give a lot. Waste a lot. Throw a lot. Pick up a lot. Walk a lot. But the most famous lot of all was a woman whose name is never shared. She is merely referred to as the wife of Lot. 

Lot was the nephew of Abraham, and after moving to the promised land they parted ways. Lot moved to the big city where he met a beautiful woman who loved city life. They fell in love, were married, had children, and lived the good life. But the city of Sodom was known not only for its night life, but it’s debauchery, and God was not going to put up with it any longer. He sent a couple of angels to remove Lot and his family before destroying the city. The depth of the city’s sin was realized when the men of the city demanded that Lot send out the visitors so they could molest them. Lot refused and the mob grew angry. The angels revealed themselves, saved Lot and told him to pack. They were headed to the mountains. There was one caveat. They were not to look back.

What is it about being told not to look. “Do not look behind you but_____,” and all you want to do is look back. I feel sorry for Lot’s wife. What was it that the angels didn’t want her to see? Then again, maybe curiosity wasn’t what drew her attention back to her home town. Maybe she wasn’t ready to leave. Maybe her family was calling for her. Maybe she was as much a part of the party scene as the rest of the towns people. Whatever caused her to look back, the result was devastating. She became a permanent fixture of the landscape. Lot’s wife was transformed into a pillar of salt. 

The Apostle Paul put it this way, “ Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13,14.

Remember the old hymn? “The world behind me, The cross before me. The world behind me, the cross before me. No turning back, no turning back.” The world wants us to turn around and long for the past. Satan places the idea in our minds that the good old days were the best days. The reality is that Christ  makes every day new and His mercies refresh us. We are called to press onward toward our heavenly calling. 

What in your past keeps calling you to look behind you? Is it a past hurt? Maybe it’s a past betrayal. It’s possible that you never achieved your dreams and you keep looking back hoping for a past glory. Maybe they were better days and instead of facing your trials today, you live in the past wishing to repeat those days.

We can’t change the past. We can’t make it better or recapture lost joys.  What is ahead is a prize rooted in our relationship with Jesus. The future calls for us to look ahead, focus, and run with endurance. Whatever heaven is like, it is of greater value and joy than this world could ever offer.

As I poke my head out of the bunker I don’t plan on looking back. The bunker was cozy, but it was empty of all my friends. Covid19 is still around, but it doesn’t determine the future, or what kind of person I should be. I am of Jesus, His body, His family, and His future. There is no better place to be. 

There is a lot of joy, in seeing a lot of faces, as we drive into the parking lot on Sunday morning. We will sing lots of songs, hear lots of words, raise up lots of prayers and praise to our glorious Father. The world can call my name as loud and as long as it wants, but I throw my lot in with Jesus. I’m just saying…