The Check Engine Light...

The check engine light came on in my truck. I'm no genius when it comes to mechanics, but I know enough to tell when the engine is not running correctly. There was nothing wrong with the cycle of the engine, changing of gears, or anything largely out of the ordinary, so I left it. Eventually, I had a friend who has a computer that will tell what the engine light code is check it out. Turns out my engine is running a bit cool. Not sure how big of an effect this will have on my truck, but I know my truck was designed to run at a certain temperature. As long as it is not running at that temperature, it is not running as it should.

All this got me thinking, do we ignore our spiritual check engine light when it comes on? Maybe its a lacking prayer life, a persistent sin, no joy in our lives, or even no desire to spend personal or corporate time with God.

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me lead me in the everlasting way. (Psalm 139:23, 24 HCSB)

In Christ,
jon walton

My Dishwasher Broke...

About a week ago, my dishwasher just stopped working. It was one of those weird, out of the blue type things. I had just finished unloading it from the previous round of dishes, loaded it back up and hit start. It began then quickly lost power.

I asked a friend if he would come over and help me look at it to see if we could fix it instead of buying a new one. He agreed and we found the problem. I ordered the part needed, but had to wait for it to be shipped. Should take about a week. Till then, I would just have to wait.

You want to know something interesting? Even though my dishwasher stopped working, my family still produced dirty dishes! Not only that, but those dishes still needed to be washed, dried, and put away. This was crazy, right? I mean, my dishwasher was broke and I was waiting on the part, it's not like I could do anything about it, right?

As absurd as the previous paragraph sounds, do we do this with God? When we pray for something and God doesn't answer right away, do we stop working on it until God speaks specifically? Are there not things that still need to be done? Just because you are waiting on God doesn't mean you stop work to fulfill His will for you. Look closely at this verse:

But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31 NKJV)

Did you catch "renew their strength?" if they had stopped working on what they were waiting for, why would their strength need renewed?

Just like the dishes still need to be done even if you are waiting a part for the dishwasher, there is still work to be done on Jesus name while you are waiting on Him.

In Christ,
jon walton

The Corn Maze...

Last Sunday our family went to a birthday party at the Hayes Farm, a local farm that has pumpkin patches, hay rides, games, inflatables, and a corn maze each year. It was a lot of fun for all of us and we really enjoyed it.

While we were there, the time came for us to go through the corn maze. There was only one entrance and one exit and they were fairly close to each other. Isaiah, our 6 year old son, was there playing with several of his friends, one of which is a little girl who lives on the farm and knew the maze quite well. As we were going into the maze, Isaiah asked if he could go with all his friends. It was a safe place and if he would have been in trouble I could have easily gotten to him, so I told him it was fine. I asked him to wait at the exit for us since they would probably get through before us. Excited, they all darted into the maze while my wife and I casually strolled.

After about 30 minutes, my wife and I made it to the end. We looked around for the kids thinking they would have been done before us, but they weren't at the exit. A few other people from our group came out right behind us. They said they had just saw all the kids and they were still trying to find a way out, but wouldn't come with the adults talking to us. My wife and I kind of laughed and just waited on them to come out. When they did, we were a bit surprised.

Shortly after talking to the other adults, Isaiah and his friends found their way out. Isaiah took one step outside the maze, saw us, and ran as hard as he could to us. He gripped my wife hugging her as tightly as he could and burred his face in her stomach. I could hear him fighting back crying. One of the other kids said, "He got kinda scared when we couldn't get out of the maze and wanted to find his parents." We both hugged him and reassured him it was ok. Soon he calmed down and we went back to playing at the farm, but he didn't get too far from us the rest of the day.

Now, let me ask you a question: Do we look like this when we are separated from God? Not that we could ever truly get away from God being omnipresence, but we can choose to be "separated" from Him. When we choose sin over Jesus or ourselves and our desires over His. There are even times that God "pulls away" from us for a time. But do we miss Him? Are we so dependent on Jesus that if He isn't where we can get to Him that we get scared? Would we run to Jesus, cling to Him, and bury our face in His chest when we found Him?

David expresses such a relationship with God in Psalm 27:1, 9:

The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom should I be afraid? ... Do not hide Your face from me; do not turn Your servant away in anger. You have been my help; do not leave me or abandon me, God of my salvation.

 In Christ,
jon walton
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I Deserved That...

I was driving on the interstate through a city about a week ago. I had been out of town for a while and was looking forward to getting back to friends and family.

In my hurry to get back, I may have been driving slightly over the speed limit. As I was cruising in the fast lane, I see something out of the corner of my eye. I look to my right to see a Tennessee State Trooper waving at me. My heart sank and I felt sick to my stomach. I knew what was coming next. I was completely in the wrong and "I really wanted to get home" was not a good enough reason to be speeding. I prepared to get what I deserved.

The Trooper then smiled and waved his hand up and down with a flat palm signaling me to "slow down." I waved back to say "thanks" and quickly decreased my rate of acceleration.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, this is what we get, mercy. We deserve to pay for r crimes, our sins, but Jesus gives us second chances. If Jesus forgives and gives mercy to us and we are trying to be like Him, shouldn't we give forgive and show mercy to each other?

Thanks for the mercy extended to me God and Tennessee State Trooper!

In Christ,
jon walton

Prayer...

I usually like to use this space to send an encouraging word or thought provoking message. Something that would either brighten your day, or cause you to think about your relationship with Jesus Christ. But today I am doing something different. I'm asking you to pray.

Nicole, a girl in the youth group I am privileged to shepherd, has been sick for over 2 months now. She has been to doctors, specialists, chiropractors, and many others and no one can seem to pinpoint exactly what is going on. I have seen her suffer the entire time with severe headaches, joint pain, hot flashes, weakness, and extreme fatigue. This is incredibly difficult for me who thinks of her as a daughter, but for her actual parents, brother, and grandparents, this entire ordeal has been just draining.

So I am asking you please, pray and pass this on to get more people praying. I have seen how powerful prayer is first hand with my wife and son.

The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will restore him to health; (James 5:15a HCSB)

In Christ,
jon walton

You Stink...

I was driving up my driveway to my house the other day and Rosemary, my indoor dog, ran to the truck as I was pulling in. When Rosemary is outside and my wife is coming home, she lets Rosemary ride with her to the house. So, in like manner I opened my truck door and said, "Come on, Rosey." Excitedly, she wagged her tail, squatted down, and leaped into my lap. I almost got sick. "Rosey! You stink!" I shouted as the distinct smell of a dead animal filled my nostrils. One of my outdoor dogs had killed a opossum and brought her trophy to the front yard. Apparently, Rosemary had came to it and decided to roll in it. And now, she was in my lap in a confined space, the cab of my truck.

This is how sin affects our lives. For Rosemary, it was fun to roll in that dead animal. Why? I really have no idea. For some reason, it must be enjoyable to her. It is the same reason why people continue in some sin. It is enjoyable for a time. However, just as Rosemary stunk to high heaven, sin leave a foul odor on us. The guilt and shame of it can linger with us for quite a while. When other people find out about it, it is repulsive to them. Just like a dog who has rolled in a dead animal, everyone can tell what we have been doing. As soon as I brought Rosemary in the house, my wife could tell what the dog had done.

Rosemary needed a bath. Quickly. So do we when we sin. We need to get the stench off of us. How? By asking for forgiveness from God and repenting(that means turning away from) of our sin. After I gave Rosemary a bath she was playful, smelled good, and got attention and love. The same it true for us. When we repent, God heals us. He removes the smell of sin and replaces it with a pleasing aroma. This is evident in our lives.

Therefore repent and turn back, that your sins may be wiped out so that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. - Acts 3:19

In Christ,
jon walton
Back To Crossroads

For Whom the Lord Loves...

Isaiah(my son) & I were riding in my truck the other day to take care of some errands. While driving, my wife called. We began talking about a reward for Isaiah because he had broken a bad habit and had promised him that if he did we would get him something. When I hung up the phone, I told Isaiah what we had decided. Isaiah, in a sweet innocent voice, said, "Ok. I didn't hear what you told mom." I really didn't think anything about it, I just kept driving.

A moment later, Isaiah said, "Dad, I didn't really lie to you..." this wasn't the innocent voice he had just used. This was a timid, almost fearful voice. He continued, "...when I said I didn't hear what you said to mommy, I really did. But I didn't really lie to you."

First off, how many of us would even think this was important enough to bring up? He was in the clear. I wasn't asking him about it, or trying to get him to confess, he did this on his own. I think many of us would look at how unimportant this was and would just let it go. But something else was happening here. Isaiah was experiencing something. He was feeling the conviction of the Holy Spirit, something lots of people don't like to talk about.

I explained to Isaiah that he did lie, but what he was feeling was actually good. Why? Because of Proverbs 3:12:

"For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights."

It took a while, but Isaiah did finally understand. He knew that he had sinned and that actually broke his heart. He even cried when he realized that he did lie an it was a sin. But I didn't stop with just him understanding that he had sinned. I explained that because he felt this way, it was a confirmation that God loves him. Then I got to share 1 John 1:9:

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

I told Isaiah that I forgive him and helped him ask God for forgiveness.

So knowing all this now, has God been showing you correction in your life? What do you need to ask forgiveness for? Just something to think about.

In Christ,
jon walton