To Do it or not to Do it?
--by DaySounds © 2024

"To be or not to be?", "Not to do it or to do it?", those questions sometimes are identical,
as identical can be their answers and consequences.

"... Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of Yahweh, which He will work for you today;
for the Egyptians whom you see today you will never see again. Yahweh will fight for you,
and you have only to be still." Ex. 14:13, 14

"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in
the earth. Yahweh of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah" Psalm 46: 10, 11

Sometimes, we can be mistaken about identifying the voice of God.

The parable about the 2 boats and the helicopter (written anonymously in the decade of the 1980s),
slightly modified in order to fit real life:

Once upon a time, far, far away, long, long time ago, a man woke up early in the morning, got up,
and fixed himself a cup of coffee. He opened the Bible at random and read, "Be still and know that
I am God."

As he was reflecting on it, someone knocked at the door. It was his neighbor, who--without any
polite greetings--said, "Andrew, since your car is being repaired, I have come to give you a ride."
"I don't need a ride; I am not planning to go anywhere today," replied the sleepy man, "Come in;
I have fixed some coffee." Ivan said, "Andrew, didn't you look outside? Didn't you hear the news?"
"No, I didn't," was the reply. "This heavy, continuous rain has swollen the river, and all the
streets are flooded. Hurry up, let's get out of here," Ivan pleaded.

Andrew opened wide the door, looked outside, and said, "Oh, it is just a couple inches. The rain
will stop, and the waters will recede soon. Come on in, and have some coffee." Ivan replied,
"The town has issued a flood alert and encourages evacuations. Let's go!" "Thank you, Ivan, but
I'll stay. You, guys, are paranoid," Andrew retorted ... Ivan left.

Andrew finished his breakfast, took a bath, shaved, got dressed, and looked through the window.
The water had climbed the stairs all the way to his front porch. He got worried and wished he had
listened to his friend; however, he remembered the Bible verse he had read earlier, sat down, and
read it again: "Be still and know that I am God."

He was reflecting on it when someone shouted from outside, "Hey, Andrew, come out; we have room in
the boat for you." Andrew opened the front door and saw some of the members of his church in a
small rowboat. Through the open door, a trickle of water crept into the living room floor. Andrew
hesitated, thinking of the Bible verse he had been reading; then, he said, "Thank you, guys, but
I think that the waters will recede." They insisted, but finally they gave up and left.

As time went by, Andrew saw the water all over the living room floor. He turned on the radio and
heard that the town had issued a mandatory evacuation. He kept reflecting on his morning Bible
reading, and decided that God was speaking to him, instructing him to be still, not to fear because
He was going to save him. Believing it to be the voice of God, he didn't want to disobey or express
unbelief. The radio announcer said that the reservoir dam had collapsed, and the entire town was
going to be drowned; she encouraged any stubborn, remaining people to flee quickly to higher ground.

Andrew went to the second floor; then, as the water climbed higher and higher, he made it to the roof.
He prayed for God to save him, according to His Word. After a short while, a helicopter arrived and,
hovering above the roof, lowered a ladder. Through the loudspeakers, they instructed Andrew to hang
tight on to it, that they were going to pull him up. He refused, saying that God had told him to be
still and see His deliverance. After a great deal of persistence, finally the crew of the helicopter
gave up and flew away to save other people.

Andrew drowned. In Heaven, he told God, "You failed me. I believed in Your Word, but you didn't honor it.
Why did you give me that Bible verse to read this morning?" God replied, "I didn't give you that Bible
verse. You needed to read and interpret My Word in context. I heard your prayers, though, and I sent you
Ivan, your brothers from church, and a helicopter to save you, but you refused their help. All you had
to do was to hop into the car, the boat, or hang tight onto the ladder that was offered to you. The
Israelites were not to fight the Egyptians, who were pursuing them. They were to march forward and cross
the Red Sea on dry ground."

"Yahweh said to Moses, 'Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.'" Ex. 14:15

Sometimes, God wants us to be still, meaning "Don't fight."; however, He doesn't want us to be petrified.
God wants us to do something. "herpoo" (Psalm 46:10) in certain contexts means "be still/wait," and in
others "relax." "yatsab" (Exodus 14:13) means "stand."

A few additional illustrations:
--A girl or a boy waiting for "the right husband or wife." They don't see the person God has placed in
front of them, so they wait, wait, wait, and wait for "the right one," ... until it's too late, and end
up single, or choosing the wrong one.

--Someone seeking a job, a house, a college. They reject offer after offer, ... until its too late, and
all their money is gone.

--A family member who refuses to communicate with another family member waiting for his/her conditions
to be met, ... until it's too late, and death claims the life of one of them.

--Someone is invited by "Christian" co-workers to a party, with optional beer and wine to drink. Peer
pressure to drink more increases as time goes by, and heavier liquor, drugs, and porno magazines start to
"show up." She should run away fast, but she stays, ... until it's too late, and she gets drugged and
raped.

The famous sentence "If in doubt, do nought." for a long time has been held as good advice; however, it
is not always so. When in doubt regarding whether or not something is sinful, do something: pray, reflect
on what the Bible says about it in context, and if it is sinful or can lead to sin, flee, run away from it
... fast! The Bible, when interpreted in context, is our best guidance. Feelings can be deceiving. They
should be taken into consideration only when they align with God's Word.

The ethics and moral codes of societies differ from each other, and change through centuries and decades.
Many institutions and people who call themselves Christian throw passages of The Old and New Testament to
the trash because those passages condemn the values adopted and promoted by the current culture, even
though the content of those passages is clearly stated in the Old Testament and ratified by the New.

If, according to the Bible, something is sinful or can lead to something sinful, don't do it. On the other
hand, if--according to the Bible--something is neither sinful nor can lead to anything sinful, you can do
it. In this latter case, between 2 or more good options, which one to choose? You can lean on your feelings,
share them with your spouse or best friend, and ask for advice from godly mentors (parents, grandparents,
pastors, or spiritual counselors). Flipping a coin or a little flat rock could do only if you don't have
any of the above people, and your feelings don't lean towards any of the choices. Sometimes, the difference
is between life and death--to be or not to be. Your life is precious to God. Take good care of it and cheer up!

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According to the USA National Weather Service, Hurricane Katrina (2005) claimed a total of 1,833 lives.
Many of the people who drowned died in their homes because they refuse to evacuate. They thought that the
flood was not going to be that bad, and wanted to
1.- protect their homes from damage or looting,
2.- protect their pets, and/or
3.- save the costs implied in temporary housing and related expenses.


DaySounds © 2024
PO Box 2145
Estes Park, CO 80517
USA
Daysounds.net