What measure do you use when you’ve failed to live up to every one presented?  Are you forced to develop your own gradient, with some reasonable expectation of excusing yourself or justifying your particular behavior?  May you simply ignore the imploring voices of self, satan, the world and your once remembered shepherd to maintain your self-sustaining universe?  Are you convinced of the surety and safety of your position, beyond the advice and consent of those who knew better even when I didn’t, or are you saving up the remorse for an upcoming day of humility born of tragic episode?  Or have you regretfully, steeled your conscience to the Word of God such that it no longer tugs at your heart or inflames your sensibilities?  What’s to become of you, if this backslidden state is norm?

I am a failure to man.  I cannot explain it nor escape the impacts of my tenuous human position.  I have no rational explanation to give my friends, family or interviewers when asked for discussion regarding my circumstance, poverty or apparent propensity to supposed aimless wandering.  Yet, they avoid me not from poverty or frustration at inability to assist but to avoid the inexplicable joy present within my life in spite of situational implication.  How can they sustain their concrete understanding in light of factual in-congruence?  I am a winner by God’s guidelines and therefore must be castigated, excluded or condemned in order to protect man’s self-confidence.  I get it, I love them even more for they are truly in danger of eternal separation from the Lord.  They are piteous at best, yet they muse about their concern for my unfortunate predicament, excusing of course the facts of my utter peace, comfort and happiness.

How then shall I react each time they clamor for attention and sympathetic understanding for their regular, timely, worldly predicament?  Shall I, in response, ignore their cries for assistance, turn my ear away from the listening they would be accorded in love?  May I avoid their criticism as they feel indebted by my care to “help” me find my way from my apparent ignorance, to wake me from my Christian insanity.  I thank them and dry their tears, praying that God will intervene, sending his Holy Spirit to break the spell of their slumber.  So in effect we each believe ourselves the assisting party.  How then do we determine who is right and who wrong?

The joy of the Lord is my strength.  Their joy is found in the comfort of their things and security of money.  My hope is found in the work of Jesus Christ the King.  Their hope is faith in their ability to overcome the world around them.  I am living for my real life which begins when I pass the veil of this world.  They live to elongate or squeeze every ounce of return available in this life.  I surrender, they fight to conquer.  I love they barter for attention or improved position.  Is there a right position or a wrong position?  No there is only perspective and belief.  Ours are simply different, nonetheless one will prove a better choice in eternity.  The choice has always been yours.