Let me start by asking
you a question: Have you ever gotten lost? I mean really lost?
You know the “we’re not
in Kansas anymore” kind of lost? Before I phones and gps units, there was
something called stopping to ask for directions.
Because I am speaking
today to a room full of women, I am confident that you know what I’m talking
about. The majority of us have at one time or another stopped to ask for
directions if we get lost.
I
think there are degrees of lost. On the lowest level, we lose things. We lose
our keys, our phones, the one elusive sock in the dryer. Losing things can be
frustrating, but because they are just things, they can be replaced.
The
next level of lost is losing what I consider more abstract ideals. We can lose things
like our tempers, lose our minds, lose time, lose control, and even lose hope.
When those things are lost, it takes much more emotional effort to retrieve a
sense of completeness or sense of safety.
The
top level of lost is when we lose our way. Losing our way is far worse because
it not only denotes going in a direction other than the one we wanted to go in,
but a shift in purpose and very often a shift in perspective. And the worst
part of losing our way is it can happen without our being aware.
As a
Christian, the idea of being lost conjures up pictures of being outside of
Christ, of being in a place of distress and aimless wandering, perhaps even of
being headed for hell. We even talk about a world without Christ as being lost.
God’s
word tells us there is an absolute way to go. When Jesus said he was the way, he was
saying that he was the direction, the
way to get there. Where? To him. When Jesus said to come to him, he
claimed he was the destination. He’s our
purpose and our aim.
As I
was thinking and praying about this luncheon, I started thinking about
destinations and directions. The Lord brought to mind the idea of true north. Just
sort of popped into my head. I was intrigued. I wanted to know more. I’d heard
of true north before, and I was certain there was great spiritual application
and significance.
But
the more I thought about it, the more obscure it became. It seemed that
whenever I thought I understood true north, I felt like I was further away from
understanding than when I first began.
It was sort of like those floaters you
get in your eye. You know that little shadow-dot that whenever you try to look
directly at it and identify the location, it moves? It’s there, but its exact
location is not easily found and held on to. So understanding true north
started to become like that for me: a conceptual floater just out of reach.
So what
is true north? Is it an abstract notion or is it more concrete? In the natural,
there are two different norths - magnetic north and true north. True north is simply
the direction along the
earth's surface towards the geographic North Pole. It is what it is.
It’s a constant.
Magnetic
north, on the other hand, shifts; it is not a constant. But compasses, which we
use to determine north, especially if we get lost in the woods, point to
magnetic north, not true north.
So
why does it really matter which north you’re referring to? Isn’t north north? Well,
in 2002 it was determined that the difference between the two was about 590
miles. That’s a pretty big difference. If you fix your sites on the wrong north
you will end up somewhere else.
So what about true north as being symbolic of something? You see, in the
world, even though there is disagreement over what true north is exactly, the
idea is similar but the definition is not. It depends on who you ask.
If you asked David Rogers, he might
ask you these questions: “What's your direction in life? How can you tell where
you are going? How can you tell if you got there? Find your True North and
define your heading.” He even has Six Steps to Define Your “True North.” Sounds like questions your pastor would ask on a
Sunday morning. I thought Rogers was going to tell me the mysteries of what
true north really was. But because his frame of reference, his compass
was aligned to his notion of true
north, which is business and leadership, his definition of true north is “delivering
double-digit returns to investors [and] providing the best customer service.” Now if you did a google search of true
north, which I must admit that I did, you
can find books that might help point you to true north. One is Finding your True North by Michael
Henderson. His true north is defining and discovering your personal values and enriching
your life. In reality, you are your own true north. To me, it’s like claiming
that magnetic north is actually true north. Because we are not constants and are
always changing, it’s not wise to use yourself as a stand in for true north.
So I think the first thing to do is
determine what or who is your true north, and discover what is the constant, sure fixed
center that you look to. If we claim to be Christians, God is our true
North. Jesus is our true north - the absolute, the ideal, our standard for what
is real, what is true, what is constant. Most of us would agree on that.
But once
we accept God and his son, Jesus, as our true north, what comes next?
We need to fix our eyes, our sights, our bearings on
the constancy of what we profess – fix our paths, our destinations, the goings
in and goings out of our individual and collective journeys. We need to fix all these things on the true north of God’s nature, his will, his
plans and the depth of his love and his heart.
Hebrews 12:2says: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and
perfector of our faith. Fix means literally to turn the eyes away from other
things and fix them on something; fix means to fasten, to attach, to join, to
secure, and my favorite, to glue. We are to glue our eyes on Jesus
When I was young, my mother used to
tell me that my eyes were glued to that TV set. Ever try to talk to someone,
like your husband when he is watching a movie? Nothing. He can’t hear you, he can’t
see the dog getting into the garbage, and he certainly can’t see the kids
running crazy. Why? Because all his attention is fixed on the screen. What does this mean for us? We need to fix our
eyes on Jesus like a man who’s watching Braveheart.
Once we agree that God is our true
north, and we have fixed our eyes on Jesus, now what? I think once we have done those things then it seems logical to look at another
area: those reasons we get off
track. Throughout our lives we are bound to get lost at one time or another. Why
is it important to consider this? We need to be aware. There is this legacy of “lostness”
passed down to the human race from Adam and Eve. When they chose to disobey God, one of the things
they chose was to realign themselves from the constant true north of God to the
shifting magnetic north of the world. They were using the pull of the world to
help them determine their course.
Did
you know that one of the literal meanings of the word sin in the Bible is simply
to miss the mark? If you were shooting an arrow at the center circle on a
target and it hit at about ¼ inch off to the left of the center, it would have
missed its mark. Being off track doesn’t always mean that you have to be 1,000
miles away from your intended direction. You could be right next door. I think
it’s the subtle veering off that’s more dangerous because unless you are
spending time in God’s word and in his presence, you might not even notice
until it’s too late. What do they say about putting a frog in water in a pan
and slowly turning up the heat? The frog will adjust and won’t notice that he’s
probably heading towards being the first course until it’s too late. I think we
can be like the frog.
Perhaps
the question is not what true north is, but understanding how to stay on track
and remain focused. As I was putting together this small teaching I kept coming
up against a wall. About a week and a half ago, I was trying to work on it and
got so frustrated, that I went into the bedroom and laid down next to my dog,
Zuzu. As I laid there and spoke out my frustration to God, he immediately
brought to my heart the problem: I had been trying to find something to teach
on instead of trying to understand something that he had wanted me to know
about me, about the condition of my
walk. Not a topic to be taught, but an intimate, personal heart-lesson to be
learned. Why did the Lord want me to study true north? It’s because if I was
being honest, I would have to admit that this past year I had gotten off track
– I had missed the mark, and lost my way. I wasn’t 1,000 miles away – I was
right next door , but I had still missed the mark.
So
I’d like to share three things that can contribute to a loss of bearings and then
three things to do if we find ourselves off track and off center of our true
north. The Lord showed me there were certain situations and circumstances that would
lend themselves to my getting off track. The first is unfamiliar territory. This
is where we are in a place we have never been before, where we have no frame of
reference. It can be a place where we have taken ourselves to or a place where
the Lord has purposely brought us to. Unfamiliar territories can represent new
experiences, new environments, or new relationships. We are going a way we have
not gone before.
A few
years ago when we first moved to NY, I remember having difficulty driving. Driving
wasn’t new to me, but where I was driving was new. Just behind my house, there
is a maze of small streets that are winding, connecting, and taking you
anywhere but where you want to go. I got lost back there once for about a half
an hour. I was like a rat in a maze. Because my point of view was horizontal, and
I was in unfamiliar territory I did not have the best point of reference. Being
on unfamiliar streets caused me to lose my direction. I had gotten turned
around and couldn’t get out. Five years later I still won’t venture behind my
house into that development.
Whenever
we’re in unfamiliar territory, we need to be conscious of the tendency to lose
sight of our true north. This past year has been one of the more difficult I’ve
gone through because I’ve been brought to uncharted waters so to speak. I am
facing things I have not had to face before. We need to recognize how
unfamiliarity can cause us to lose sight. When we are in these unfamiliar
places, we need to dig deeper into the Lord to stay connected and not get
distracted or allow confusion to plot our course.
Getting lost is not just a frustration. Being in unfamiliar territory can lead to
dangerous situations and outcomes. We need to keep our spiritual wits
about us. My son told me a story about
when he graduated from college, and he worked for the census bureau. His
territory was some of the deepest back roads in eastern VT. So one day, he went
off with his list of names and addresses.
He
travelled for quite a while, going deeper and deeper into the woods looking for
the last name on the list. It wasn’t long before he realized he was probably lost.
The road got smaller, of course it was dirt and rutted, and it was starting to
get late, which meant it was also getting dark. He said as he came around a curve, he saw there
was this small cabin. At first he
thought he had found the address he was looking for and had safely arrived at
the destination.
Then
he saw it. There was a man in overalls standing on his porch with an old
barking hunting dog and a shot gun. He said it was just like a scene out of
deliverance. There was my son, young, dreadlocks past his shoulders, trying to
decide if he should get out and either interview this man, ask for directions,
or turn around quick and get out alive. He chose to leave.
Why did I tell you this? Because as
Christians, we often find that we have gone down the wrong road and have come
upon a waiting enemy. He might not be wearing overalls and carrying a shotgun, but
he is not there to be our welcoming tour guide.1 Peter 5:8 says, “be self-controlled and alert.
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to
devour.” We go down the road we think
is right but if we have misread the directions, or worse, have no directions,
we can end up in a place where we don’t want to be.
Whenever you are in unfamiliar territory be alert,
dig deep, and realign yourself to your true north in Christ.
The
next thing that can cause us to get off track are storms When the winds blows, the rain comes
down in blinding sheets, when the elements are chaotic and wild, how we see,
what we hear, what we feel can be affected and exaggerated. It’s easier to get
lost in a storm than when the weather is calm and clear. We’ve all thought a lot about storms lately with everything
that’s happened this past week.
This past year, the Lord has been teaching me about storms. He has shown
me that my tendency during a stormy trial was to put my head down and cry out
for the storm to pass, “Lord, take this from me.” But I was missing the message
God wanted to speak to me in the
storm.
There
are different kinds of storms: storms of a fallen world, storms of our own
making and storms sent by God to reveal His glory and his character. Chris
Altrock from the True North church says, “at times we get pulled off-course. God is our True
North, but heartache, anger, confusion, and the pursuit of other less-than
ideal goals often cause us to veer west, east, or south of Him.” As we navigate through the storms of life’s trials, we can get off course, especially
if we are not on solid ground.
Storms
at sea can be the most terrifying because there is no solid, higher ground. You
are at the mercy of the shifting elements, and it can mean disaster. Because
storms at sea represent5 trials that challenge our spiritual balance, I’d like to talk briefly
about some natural dangers associated with storms at sea and how we can apply
them to maintaining our spiritual true north bearings.
The first danger if
you are caught in a storm at sea? Capsizing: the boat that you are in is
overturned by the storm. What is the spiritual application? Whose boat are you
taking refuge from the storm in? What is the size of your boat, your faith? Are
you your own refuge, your own boat? Or are you safely resting in the bow of
Jesus, who calms the storm with just a word? What over turns us? What tosses us
out of the boat? As Christians, we need to ask ourselves why we do what we do,
and why we are where we are. We need to get into God’s presence and seek his
face for our very survival. Ask yourself: What capsizes my faith?
The next danger
with a storm at sea is breaking apart. The waves of the storm can crash down on
us with such intensity that we can’t bear the pressure, and we break apart. I’ve
done my share of breaking apart over the years. What do we do if we find
ourselves breaking apart? When the storm comes, hide yourself in the shadow of
his wings. He is able to withstand the pressure of the storm. It is his love
that is our shield. Remember, nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. Romans 8:35-39 tells us:
Do you think anyone is going to be
able to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not
hunger, not homelessness, not
bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood
because they hate you. We're sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us.
I'm absolutely convinced that
nothing--nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or
low, thinkable or
unthinkable--absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has
embraced us. (The MESSAGE)
No storm can separate us or capsize our faith if we stay anchored
to Jesus. We should not be fearful and hide our heads when the storms come. I’m
not necessarily saying we should be storm chasers and go looking for the storm,
but when they come, not if they come but
when they come, we can stay on course, stay centered, stay fixed on our true
north because we can do all things through Him who strengthens us.
The next danger when
in a storm at sea is flooding - being
overtaken by the very action of the storm. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with
the weight of a stormy trial? Imagine a boat that is flooding. The water is not
only coming up over the bow in crashing waves, but because the boat is damaged,
the water is coming in and rising. You are sinking and sinking fast.
Ever felt like that
in a trial? Lord, I’m going down.
Beware of flooding - allowing the intensity of the storm to overtake you. If
you are sinking because you have set sail in a boat of your own making and you
are going down, call on his name and you will be saved. How many times do we
refer to our salvation as when we were saved? There is a painting that shows a
stormy sea. Up out of the waves a hand is reaching up from the depths. Another
hand – the hand of God - is reaching down and taking hold of the sinking soul.
Call out to God. He will rescue you.
The last danger when
there is a storm at sea is crew members being washed overboard during a storm.
Have you lost friends and loved ones who were completely overtaken by the
storms of life? I have. Those who have walked away from God because they
perhaps blamed him for the storm or felt he didn’t rescue them the way they
wanted? God has not forgotten them just because they have been washed away. He
still sees them and still desires for them to take hold of his hand. It is
still being offered, and there is still hope.
Storms can either
be the greatest obstacle or they can be the greatest opportunity. It all
depends on not only whose boat you are in, but on whether or not you will put
your trust in the one who can control the storm.
The
last thing that can cause us to getting off track is a disruption of our inner
compass. What is your inner compass, your method of determining direction? As
Christians, our inner
compass should the Word of God and the Spirit of God. But when we begin to lose our way and ignore God’s Word
and His spirit, we are like a compass that has been demagnetized. In the
natural, when that happens, the compass will show all directions, not just the
opposite one.
What
can demagnetize a compass? Things like disruption and randomization can cause a
compass to not work properly. But what does that mean for us? Our inner
compass, what guides us, what keeps us going toward spiritual true north, can
be made ineffective when we begin to view life and circumstances as useless,
random, and intrusive instead of seeing life through God’s eyes, through His
perspective, through the “in all things God works together for our good” view.
Our inner compass needs to be the eternal sureness of the Word
and the living breathing intimacy of the Spirit. Samuel Rutherford wrote: “Your
heart is not the compass that Christ sailth by.” My ways and my plans are like magnetic north. God’s are true north. Isaiah
55:9: says, “for as the heavens are lofty and exhaulted
than the earth, so my ways my directions and purposes are loftier and more
exhaulted than yours.” Not as I will,
not my true north, but your will, your true north, Lord (Matthew 26:39). Absolute
true north, like absolute truth.
Now
that we know God is our true north, and we need to fix our eyes on Jesus to
maintain a true heading, and are aware of the things that can get us off track,
the last thing I’d like to share is if
we do find ourselves off track or downright lost, how we can get back.
An article in Boy’s Life magazine says,
“You’re lost in the woods. That’s bad. You forgot your compass. That’s worse.
But it’s not hopeless. There are several techniques you can use to find true
north and get yourself reoriented. To stay on track.” It actually says that. So I thought it would
be interesting to see if the advice could apply to spiritually trying to find
true north.
The first is
something called the Watch
Trick. Now I’m not going to go into depth about what the actual methods are
because that’s not really the point I am trying to make, so bear with me as I
will attempt to make it applicable. Now the watch trick involves using your
watch to align yourself with the sun and then through a variety of clever maneuvers,
you can usually determine where north is.
For us, using what you have brought
along with you, what you are wearing can help you get back on track. As a
Christian, what are you wearing that can help you find your direction? Consider
what are we told to put on in scripture:
Romans
13:12: The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside
the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
Ephesians 6:13: Therefore put on
the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, when the storms
come, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything,
to stand.
Colossians 3:10: put on the new
self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
What are you wearing? Are you still
wearing your old man clothes? What would
be the result if you used those old creation coverings to help you determine
the right way to go?
The next thing Boy’s
Life magazine suggests is using the Stick Trick: using creation to help you
find your way. Basically, you need to find a stick that is about three feet long. Poke
it in the ground so that it is standing straight up. Then place a rock at the
end of the shadow cast by the stick. Wait about 15 minutes.
What does this mean for us? Romans
1:20 says: For since the creation of the world God's invisible
qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being
understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
Look around you. Consider the things
God has made. Jesus told his disciples to consider the lilies of the field, the
sparrows. See the glory of God in his creation and by seeing God in his
creation, allow God’s creative genius to declare his greatness, his plan, and his
power.
And last, Boy’s Life calls this the Oldest Trick in the Book: stay where you are
and don’t move. It says: “if you have no watch, and the sun has
gone down, stay put. Rescuers look near where you were last; if you wander,
you’re less likely to be found.”
If you are lost and you can’t find
your way, don’t run. Stay put and the Shepherd will come out and search for you
and he will bring you home. Your heavenly father will not leave you lost. Why? Because
as it tells us in the psalms God is active in his love for us: he watches, he
hears, he searches, he protects, he stills our hunger, he parts the heavens, he
restores our souls, he gives us strength, and he turns our wailing into
dancing. He will find you and bring you back from captivity.
Allow God to
be your true north, fix your eyes on Jesus, be on the alert for that which
tries to distract you, and know how to get back if you veer off course. Romans
12:2: tells us to “not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world but
be transformed by the renewing of your minds.” This is important because the next verse tells
us: “then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good,
pleasing and perfect will.”
Do not allow
your mind or your character to be conformed to the pattern of this world – do
not exchange the constancy of God’s true north for the shifting magnetic north
of the world.
Renew, renovate, completely change your mind. Allow God to
transfigure you – then you will be able to be confident of your true north.
There is a line in the
movie Prince Caspian based on C.S. Lewis’s book which says: “You have the
chance to become the most noble contradiction in all of history.” How? Oswald
Chambers tells us: “God expects my personal life to be a “Bethlehem.” He asks: “Am I allowing my natural life to be
slowly transfigured by the indwelling life of the Son of God?”Am I allowing my
old man, my magnetic north, to be realigned and transfigured?
I want to leave you with a challenge: Are you willing to
align yourself with God? Are you willing to trade the ashes of the world for
the beauty and absolute truth of God?
