Blind Lookouts

I can't wait to discover what God wants to say to me today! How about you? I know that whether he's inspiring me, encouraging me, challenging me or convicting me, everything he says to me is intended to bless me and help me find real life. So here we go! I'm taking in just four verses today from Isaiah 56 (v. 9-12). It might take several readings, but ask yourself what the message is for you today.

Israel's watchmen are blind . . . they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; . . . They are shepherds who lack understanding. (v. 10-11)

Blind lookout guards, watchdogs without a bark and senseless shepherds all have one thing in common--they're pretty worthless. The imagery here is brilliant and funny. God definitely has a sense of humor, as well as a way with words. Imagine guards posted at the tower, entrusted with sounding the alarm if the city or the base is being attacked. But as they peer out across the landscape, they can't see a thing! And then there's the neighbor who buys a dog because she wants to feel safer, but the poor thing only hacks when it tries to bark! These sound like a scene out of a Monte Python flick! Sheep are dumb enough animals to walk right into a wolf pack or a hole in the ground. That's why they need shepherds. But if the shepherds are just as oblivious those sheep are really in for it!

God is talking specifically about the leaders, especially those entrusted with the spiritual oversight of his people. They were not much help because they only told the people what they wanted to hear. Every week their sermon topic was something like Everything's Just Peachy or You Don't Need to Change a Thing. It makes for big crowds and good offerings! ... But it also leaves people wandering and misguided and vulnerable to the many attacks on their lives and their relationship with God by our Enemy.

We need people in our lives who tell us the truth. And it's not just our spiritual leaders. I need friends who tell me the truth when they see me heading the wrong direction. I need a mate who has her eyes open to how I'm doing spiritually and who loves me enough to not just turn a blind eye if I'm drifting. And they need me to do the same for them. As a parent, I've got to be sure that I am paying close attention to what is happening in my kids' lives. They are depending on me to protect them. I don't want to be a blind watchman! And if I do see a real problem I've got to have the courage to speak up even if it makes me unpopular with them. I am wise to surround myself with people who have discernment instead of friends who wouldn't know a rattlesnake from a pile of cow manure. They will help keep me out of trouble instad of leading me into it.

So what kind of people have you surrounded yourself with?

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