My rope fence

I looked out my window one beautiful morning and I smiled , not really because it was a beautiful day but because I saw the rope that’s called a fence around my apartment (hostel) and I thought “how silly is this”.

There’s a green rope around the apartment I stay in, its barely an inch thick, it hangs just about a meter from the ground and its meant to serve as a fence, there’s a sign board  (now two) that warn everyone about trespassing or ‘jumping’ the fence. Well to me its makes no sense to walk a long distance around the fence in a direction that’s opposite my destination when I can easily go undearneath it. So I’ve been a deviant and I’ve been caught in the act and  ‘re-instructed’ just in case the sign boards weren’t clear enough. Well in response I just became ‘wise’, so I come out of my door and I scan my surroundings, left, right, no one? And quickly I’m ‘through’ the fence. It always has me smiling when I act like that (stealth mode).

So that morning when I looked out the window at my rope fence I smiled because of how silly it looked, a rope, really? Who would expect anyone to really heed to that? But as I looked on, this conversation went on in my heart;

Stubborn heart- I’m just going to keep flauting this rule because it makes no sense.
Good heart- what about obedience to authorities as the bible instructs ?
Stubborn heart- even God would understand, God doesn’t give us silly rules, He is God!
Good heart-are you sure about that?
Stubborn heart-well, ehmmm….
Good heart- doesnt it appear silly that this God would plant a beautiful tree in the garden of Eden, with enticing fruit on it and instruct Adam and Eve not to eat of it? Why did He put it there in the first place? Why would He make the road to eternal life narrow and crooked while the road to destruction is wide and smooth?
Stubbor heart- ehmm, I don’t know
Good heart- God does give instructions that are simingly silly alot of the time and if you can’t be obedient to men, its going to be just as difficult to Obey God because obedience to those in authority is part of obedience to God.

I’m sure I had stopped smiling after that dialogue, but stubborn heart knew that Good heart was right. That didnt make the truth easy to accept though. But when I chose to be honest with myself I realised that the time saved by going around my fence wasn’t actually significant, it would cost me nothing than a few more steps and peace of mind to do what had been established as right in this circumstance. So that morning I changed, I decided to be disciplined and I’ve been obeying the authorities ever since. Hallelujah!

Truth is, I don’t expect everyone to ‘do as I do’ but this is meant to get us all thinking, how often do we feel it’s ok to flaut instructions because its not directly from God? Or justify actions assuming God understands?  How do we react when that Good voice tries to make us see our wrongs on seemingly minute stuff. Are there boundaries that God has set around certain issues but we feel they aren’t needful or maybe we just dont have the strength to take the long path so we go under them? For me it was my fence for you it may be some entirely different issue. God is at work in each of us daily, His aim is that we attain perfection (just like Him).

Hebrews 3:15 (NIV)

As has just been said:
“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”