LOST IN A SWAMP
I was starting to wonder if we would make it out alive. While on a recent trip to the Carolinas to visit family, Linda and I toured Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, a 464-acre swampland preserve, near Charleston. As our tour ended, we strolled through the scenic swamps on the walking paths. Somewhere, we wandered astray. Eventually realizing we were lost, I connected to GPS, only to discover it led us in the opposite direction, back to the main highway, more than a mile away.
By this time, we were beset with concern, as night was approaching. Not only was the temperature plunging, but observing alligator warning signs, we didn’t relish the idea of being gobbled alive by large reptiles. Having viewed a few too many sci-fi flicks, I half expected Swamp Thing to emerge from the marsh and drag us to his miry home. Calling the park’s office, a voicemail informed me they were closed. But eventually, after much distress, we made our way from the highway to the parking lot, where, finding our vehicle with our phone flashlights, we escaped the dangers of the swamps.
At times, we all need external guidance in our lives, and that applies spiritually as well. It's true our Creator has placed in each of us a “moral compass” (Romans 2:15). But left to ourselves, with no external guidance from God, we consistently ignore it, choosing the wrong direction. Proverbs 14:23 warns, "There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." Jeremiah 10:23 adds, "It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps." That’s why we desperately need God’s Word. Psalm 119:105 instructs, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." I could've used some of that, while trudging through the swamps!
We live in an era which abhors any reference to absolute truth. It’s all about “my truth”. Simply hinting that something is “wrong”, earns you the label of a “close-minded bigot “. The problem is, without an objective standard of truth, where do you draw the line? Hitler's personal “truth” resulted in the holocaust of six million Jews. Yet if truth is relative, consistency demands that we give him a "thumbs up" for pursuing his "truth". Life demands a standard of absolute truth in every arena, whether math, sports, traffic or morality.
Thankfully, God has given us a moral standard we can trust: the holy scriptures. I don't have to wander aimlessly, stuck in the "swamps" of this world, trying to discern right from wrong. The Bible spells out the difference between right and wrong. Through the centuries, it has stood the test of time, proving to be the one absolute standard of truth we can rely on in resolving moral issues. Of course, not everything is absolute; many issues are relative. But in our world of moral uncertainty, it’s comforting to know we have a spiritual standard which will never fail us: God’s eternal word. Follow it, and you can be certain, you won’t get lost in the swamps of life.