Don't Be Double Minded
James 4:7–10
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
Christmas is a time of feasting! From family meals to church functions to cookie exchanges—the season offers many opportunities to eat! Commentator Andy Rooney once observed that the fastest moving items in bookstores were cookbooks and diet books. “The cookbooks tell you how to prepare the food, and the diet books tell you how not to eat any of it,” he wryly remarked. Christmas is not usually a time for dieting because, when we are not fully committed to a course of action, it is highly unlikely that we will achieve success. This principle is just as true in the spiritual realm as it is in the physical.
There will always be things to distract us from the path God wants us to walk. We cannot allow anything—even good things—to draw our attention away from God.
Rather, we must walk with a firmness of purpose and a singleness of heart. One of Aesop’s fables tells of a donkey that starved to death because he could never decide which of the two bales of hay that were set before him he should eat first. Once you have determined what God would have you do, fix your mind and focus your efforts toward that end. If you allow yourself to be double minded, your chance of success is small indeed. Instead, be like Jesus and walk with a firm and determined purpose in the path which God lays before you.
Growth Principle:
Do not allow the busyness of the season to distract you from living out God’s daily purposes for your life.