There's nothing like cutting into your last lemon only to find it's rotten inside. It sure looked like it was GOOD!
A few winters ago I watched my grandkids sledding down a hill. It sure looked like a GOOD thing to do. "Where's my sled?" I asked. They pointed to a round thing lying on the ground that had a circumference suitable for a size 8! Not wanting to draw attention to my girth, I folded myself down on the tiny disk - all except for my feet - and the sudden weight buried me six inches in the snow. "PUSH ME!" I yelled. It took four of them, but finally I started to slid. The off balance, with my feet hanging out, promptly spun me around and sent me sliding backwards all the way down the hill – straight into a pole! Well, it looked like a GOOD idea.
More recently I was cajoled into joining a yoga class. "It's GOOD for you," they said. I resisted for a long time until my fat pants got tight and I panicked. "Okay," I heard myself say, "I'll go."
I didn't listen to the warning bells going off in my head. I've had back problems ever since my accident years ago. Plus, I've been sitting down all year writing my book. So, yoga was a big leap in my activities. Well, it seemed like a GOOD thing to do, so I tried it.
Putting on my black leotard pants was struggle enough to throw my back out. And because I'm short, there's lots of extra leotard left over so I had to pull them clear up over my rib cage - It was hard to breathe but at least I actually looked busty for the first time in my life! Then I dragged out my Cancun, tropical X-large T-shirt, black socks, put on a fake smile, and went with my 'friend' to join the Y. (WHY!)
Have you heard of Silver Sneakers? I tried to convince myself it means they wanted me to wear silver sneakers, but the truth is it's an insurance discount for seniors! Argh! I hate that label. At least the discount was comforting.
Most of the people in the class were older than me - or so I told myself. There were crinkled limbs shooting out all over the place ... it looked so easy. Trying to keep my grunts to a minimum, I managed a few delicate poses, but the teacher didn't appreciate what I was doing one bit. She kept coming over, "No honey, like this ... lift your butt in the air and extend your leg ... breathe ... think happy thoughts."
"WHAT? I'M IN PAIN, and YOU'RE A SADIST!"
Who can breathe happy thoughts when your leotards are up to your eyeballs? It's a good thing I didn't poke a hole in them I would have blown around the room like a balloon!
I'm known to invite company over simply for the motivation to clean my house. It happened that the next day I was expecting company. Well, I added cleaning the bathroom to yoga and woke-up the next morning with MUSCLE SPASMS FROM HELL! For the next week my only exercise was hobbling from the ice pack to the microwave to heat my corn bag. Buying a recliner was truly prophetic. I think God prompted me to buy one because He knew I'd take my time accepting the fact that I have limitations. At least my friends prayed - they knew if I got healed I'd stop calling them to whine,
So, what is the GOOD God would have me do? (No, this is not about whether or not Christians should do yoga). Next time I visit the Y, I'll walk on the treadmill and swim ... easy does it woman, you're not as young as you think you are.
On the outside, all these things seemed GOOD - but cutting into them showed me that they weren't GOOD at all. At least not for me. So, here's my lesson:
We can buy what people claim to be GOOD - and discover it is not the GOOD we thought it was. Stuffing myself on a sled, or anywhere, might be funny, but I should have used more wisdom.
These days, there are many things that appears GOOD and aren't. Like sex outside of marriage ... it seems GOOD because people are doing it - but God says it isn't GOOD. You make your own list. The point is: "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." (Pr. 14:12)
"The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel." (Pr. 12:15)
Jesus teaches that the way of life is narrow road: "Enter through the narrow gate..." even if everybody else is going in a different way. "...For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." (Matt.1:13) Just because it looks GOOD, doesn't mean it's for us.
Beware what you call GOOD ... it might just turn out to be a lemon!
Love you!