What a game!

Yesterday afternoon I was able to watch most of the football game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns. In case you missed it or don't really follow football, the Steelers won. But it came down to a last second field goal. The Browns attempted a 52-yard field goal with seconds left to tie the game, but it came up a little short. The Steelers won and I breathed a sigh of relief.

The course of events shortly before the field goal attempt opened my eyes to a spiritual truth. (If you don't follow or understand football, I apologize for the rest of this paragraph.) The Steelers were forced to punt with less than two minutes left in the game. The return man for the Browns ran the ball all the way back to the Steelers' 38-yard line. This would have put them close to field goal range with plenty of time left to move closer. However, one of the Browns' players was called for holding on the return, which backed the Browns up over 25-yards, well out of field goal range. Using the remainder of time left in the game, the Browns moved the ball back to the edge of field goal range, but not close enough. Imagine if there had not been a holding penalty...

Isn't this really what sin does to us? We strive to grow closer to God. We move, slowly at times, quicker at others. But we try to move closer to the goal which Paul speaks about in Philippians 3. But sin, like a penalty in football, moves us further from God.

Contrary to what some believe, God is not the referee who throws the flag and moves the ball back. No, we do that on our own. We choose to take our life and move it back down the field, away from our goal. We choose to put more distance between ourselves and God.

If you are feeling distant from God right now, look at "penalties" in your life. Have you done things that have moved you away from God? God is like the goalposts in the end zone - He does not move. He was, and is, and is to come. He is the great I AM. He is the God of the universe, hoping you will draw near.

Our distance from God at any given point is not God's choice, it's usually ours. We have the ability to move closer, but are we willing to press on, minimize our "penalties," and grow closer? The victory lies before us, are we willing to take aim and go there?

shine!
Jason