walK with THE Wise ~ Of Adjusting and Appearances ~

There is a way that appears to be right,

but in the end it leads to death.

The appetite of laborers works for them;

their hunger drives them on.

(Proverbs 16:25)

I've got several friends who regularly visit a chiropractor. Every time they go in for an adjustment, they come out feeling better. I have a friend who is a chiropractor. I trust this person and have every confidence that they do their job well. Nana (my grandmother) practically swears by hers... I myself, however, have never gone to a chiropractor.

Years of abuse to my back as a former gymnast/acrobat... 9 pregnancies, 8 deliveries... thinking as a young'un that I was only slightly less strong than Wonder Woman... I admit that some days I struggle with a significant amount of back pain. Some mornings I've wondered if I'll be able to get out of bed. Other mornings, I wonder why I'd even want to. All of those friends I just described in the preceding paragraph have been known to lobby heavily, encouraging me to pay a visit to a chiropractor. I've always declined. I used to say it was because I didn't want to become dependent on needing someone to adjust my back to keep me moving because chiropractors were practically nonexistent in our part of West Africa.

And that was true. But it wasn't the primary reason.

The "mostest, realest" reason is that I've always been afraid to have someone mess with my neck and back... To adjust or realign anything to do with my spine? The thought can almost send me into a panic attack. The sound of popping and cracking from my backbone? It makes me nervous. Thus I figure it is better to keep plugging along without any professional help or adjustments.

I wonder if that is a little bit like what is going on in the above verses from Proverbs 16. Most of us don't purposefully take off on a destructive path thinking, "I want to destroy my hopes for a productive... or joyful... or honorable... or... future. I'd say most people are searching for a good and solid path, making plans that they think will give them security in the times to come. They strive to make what appear to be the wisest choices. But without God, without submitting to His adjustments to our days and plans... unless we allow Him to have His way in our hearts and lives, things just don't tend to maintain the way we'd like for them to. 

What appears right to me, God knows will only lead to death - separation, brokenness, darkness and destruction. Thus men work to earn money satisfy appetites, which then grow and demand more... becoming slave drivers that trap men. 

What once appeared right to you, but has now become your master?

Will you let THE One and Only Wise Master make the necessary adjustments?