"Miles to Go Before I Sleep"
A commentary by Randy Stiver
United Church of God pastor, Columbus and Cambridge, Ohio
We all travel at
times, your family and mine. As I write, my family and I are snowbound—comfortably—near
the pine shrouded Black Hills of South Dakota. We wait, at the home of
the relatives we came to visit, for interstate highways to open eastward
so we may return to our home in Ohio.
Only days after America's Thanksgiving holiday, the worst blizzard
in a decade swept through the Dakota prairies. Because we have miles
to go before we sleep, we hope this will be the day the roads will
open. That hope brings to mind the poem, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy
Evening.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
How often do we stop to marvel at the beauty of God's creation including
the snowy woods that the American poet, Robert Frost, admired a century
ago when he wrote that poem? Not often enough!
Collectively, postmodern society has bumbled its way into a seriously secular
mentality. As fierce blizzards obscure roads with blowing snow
that closes highways and strands travelers, an aggressive, post-modern
philosophy is 'evangelistically' bombarding the world today
with a doctrine of evolutionary atheism. It is a mindset that obscures
the reality and meaning of the creation we behold every day.
That mindset rejects and vilifies the truth that a creation demands
a Creator. And that in spite of the fact that the study of the sciences
reveals consistent, artful symmetry and similarity at all levels of nature.
Trees look like trees with magnificent variation of leaf and twig—yet
are obviously crafted by the same creative Artist. Birds all have wings
and plumage of such remarkably similar structure. Quadrupeds the world
over are "quadrupedal"—walking and running on all fours.
Even the apex of God's creation—mankind—reflects
the gentle hand of the same artistic Creator in all aspects of our bodies
and minds. So why do so many of us stubbornly refuse to see God's
hand in the creation?
Sadly, it's for the same reason that we stumble over the divine
laws of God that challenge our desires. Naturally, we don't enjoy
following all of God's instructions. We want to do what we want—and
not feel guilty. This is particularly true, for some reason, for sexual
actions contrary to God's teachings.
Even without knowing the details of God's law, people often feel
guilt deep down inside for wrong behavior. Their own experiences teach
them that unrestrained self indulgence is harmful.
What is the common way we rid ourselves of that guilt? Is it to repent—that
is, change our thinking and actions—as Jesus commanded in Mark
1:14-15? Not usually! We generally resort to excuses, to self-justification.
Sadly, our thinking has been twisted more than we realize. We are influenced
by "the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the
air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient"—that
is, the devil (Ephesians 2:2, New International Version).
If we don't like the message, our human nature leads us to attack
the messenger. One way we do this is by ignoring or denying our Creator,
thereby justifying rejecting His laws that condemn our lustful longings
and behaviors.
The apostle Paul summarizes that nefarious mindset: "Furthermore,
since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God,
he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done" (Romans
1:28, NIV).
Paul then follows, in the next few verses, his description of the normal
tendency to ignore God's teachings with a comprehensive list of
depraved behaviors that mindset or spirit produces. Our society's
increasing approval for such behaviors does not bode well for humanity—including
your family and mine.
But God provides us an escape clause! We don't have to blindly
follow that philosophy of sin and death. We can stop and savor the beauty
and blessings of God's creation and His way of life. We can become
immersed in the great call for sanity, in the work of Jesus Christ to
remove today's societal madness from our own lives—to become
an example for others looking forward to His coming as the King of kings.
Though the woods are lovely, dark and deep, we all have promises (to
God) to keep and miles to go before we sleep… and miles to go
before we sleep.
The need is great! The time is short!
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