I think my wife, Debbie, and I have become a couple of bona fied experts in the art of commuting over the past few years. Making the long drive from San Diego to LA County has become second nature to us and has also given us a perspective that not many get to experience in their lifetime.  As you can imagine, there is ample time to talk, be alone with God or blast some good music (which tends to make me drive faster for some reason!).  The other day as I drove up to LA to attend a meeting I noticed something intense and I just HAD to share it with you.

Christianity is filled with commuters.  Each week we do the 9-5, working the day away with purpose (or faking it), after work we might hang out with friends or play with the family, at night we attend events or stay home & make the TV line up an event in and of itself; and this is the somewhat routine.  We might occasionally read our bible or say a quick prayer, but when it comes to the "real world", God is as far away from us as San Diego is from Los Angeles.  We have this awareness of Him (we know he's there & that means a lot to us) but when it comes to the daily grind He isn't our first line of defense (in most cases he doesn't even make the top 5 list).  Instead, we worry about money, when we are injured we go straight to the hospital, if we need something that we can't afford to get we make these efficient timelines and count down the days until our plan pans out; even when it comes to getting along with the people we see daily, God is totally out of the equation. 

And then there is SUNDAY!  Sundays we make that LONG commute from the "real world" to the "church world".  We show up in our fliest digs and show off how well we can groom ourselves, we bust out the Christian lingo so that no one is wise to the fact that it took us so long to get from point A to point B.  We pretend that we've been local throughout the week, when really it takes us a couple hours to transition from where we "live" (the place where our thoughts are most comfortable, the usual spot that we inhabit when we are alone & relaxing) to where we should be spending most of our time at (where we think of others FIRST, where God has FIRST say in all that we do).  And so each week we do the commute and we think, yep, no one can tell how far we are really coming from, it's all good... right?

That's where we are wrong.  You see, as someone who commutes for a living :) it must be told that the wear and tear on your vehicle is an inevitable part of traveling.  Tires wear thin, batteries are worn down, oil dries up pretty fast and of course we can't forget the almighty fluctuation of gas prices!  All in all, being a commuter has a dark side, not to mention that it's pretty costly, too.  And it's the same way with spiritual commuters.  People who travel great distances between their weekly life and their Sunday church life.  The longer you keep commuting, the more things start to break down.  Things like your health, your peace of mind, your family, your attitude, your favor... you know... the things that matter most.  And here is where it starts to get tricky, the more time that you make the commute, the drive time starts to SEEM less than it really is.  In other words, the more familiar you are with the distance, the more comfortable you are with the amount space between you and your destination. 

This month I am continuing on in this new series called FOLLOWING JESUS, not because it's a no brained title (I mean that's what we are all supposed to do anyway!) but because we need to be a people who are local, close by and available at the drop of a hat to God's voice and His guidance.  It is crucial for all of us to be people who trust God and constantly listen for Him, whether we are in the "real world" or in the "church world", it's time to erase those dividing lines and put God at the forefront of our every day lives.   I told you it was an intense thought, I want to invite you to come to Destiny House each week this month because God has been revealing so many things about what it truly means to follow Him and I KNOW you will benefit in the most tremendous way; and if you aren't physically local to Long Beach, subscribe to our Podcast or tune in to our Sunday morning services LIVE each week starting at 11am.  Until next time...