Life's Instructions

I spent Christmas in Apex with my brother and his family. It was great to watch the kids open up presents and later on figure out how everything worked. My youngest nephew Zach got several video games. As he opened the first one and began to play I pulled out the instruction book that went with it and read about the game. I studied the controls and what moves the different players could perform. Zach on the other hand just popped the game into the system and off he went. Normally this isn’t an issue but these games were slightly more advance and he struggled with the controls and the different moves. After a short while, Zach asked me what I had read. I made him stop the game so I could explain the controls and how to perform the different moves.

That afternoon, we played a board game and as usual, I pulled out the instructions before setting it up to read about how to play. As I was explaining the game to my nephews, Zach looked and me and said, “You like reading instructions.” I thought about it for a minute and then replied, “Yup. I need to. They tell me what to do and I don’t have to stumble around. Also if I tried to figure things out on my own all the time, I might miss out on some part of the game.” Zach nodded and we moved on.

As the day progressed and Zach opened more video games and toys, he would always come find me to read the instructions as he stumbled around on his own for a while. I’ve been thinking about that a lot the past few days. First, my love of instructions and second, my desire to make sure others have the directions they need.

As crazy and free spirited as some might think I am I crave order. I like a regular schedule. I like making lists and writing things down. When I am going on a trip, I always take directions. When I open a new product, I read all the information that accompanied it. In November of 2009, when I was lost and brokenhearted, I looked for instructions. I didn’t realize it then but I do now. I went back to church. I sought the ultimate instructions for my life. Now I can’t say that I always listen to them which is something I should probably work on, but without God’s instructions, I’m really just stumbling around.

I think this is on my mind because on Sunday I will be ordained as an elder. I try not to think too hard about what that means because then I get caught up in what a huge responsibility that is. As an elder I will be chairing the Christian Education Committee. I am excited because of my desire to make sure that others have the directions they need. I have an amazing opportunity to share God’s Word and instructions with others. To make sure that those kids only have to stumble for a little while.

Wow! I guess I need to get back to reading God’s instructions so that I can be up to the task.