Luke 6:37  “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

I have written earlier about my adventures with my ‘difficult to start’ weed-whacker.  I wrote about it in the context of recognizing the many trials we face on a daily basis and responding appropriately in a faith-filled manner.

Well – I had a new adventure with this delightful little contraption and am still laughing over it as I write.  The machine works fine once it is running.  The problem is getting it started and today I set the record for futility!

I was thinking of my earlier devotional as I got it out after mowing the lawn.  I confess that when I earlier wrote of having to pull the starter cord about 100 times, it was a bit of an exaggeration.  Today I was thinking about how it would start faster than ever.  I pushed the priming bubble and started pulling.  Because I thought it would start quickly, I was counting my pulls.

Well, nothing was working!  6, 12…30…48…60…72…78 pulls plus adjustment – not a hint of response.   In the midst of this, I’m praying; asking the Lord for wisdom; asking Him to ‘heal’ the machine.  I’m kneeling next to it in the heat, sweating from mowing the lawn, my arm was ready to drop and I’m laughing at this goofy machine and the difficulty I’m having getting it going.  All the while talking to the Lord, trying to understand what is going on.

Then I saw it! – and could hardly believe it.  It was right in front of me.  If the Lord had chosen to speak audibly to me, He would have said something like, “Son – You have to turn it on first.”  Well, I turned the switch on and in 3 pulls it started!

In my elation (and feeling a bit dumber than dirt for missing the off/on switch) I thought this is a devotional.  The lesson in this just jumped out at me.  First things must come first.  Similar to “If…then” propositions.  If this happens – then that can happen.  God gives us all manner of instructions that must be obeyed in order to produce Godly results.  How often do we skip something that needs to be done first and then wonder why the results of subsequent actions are less than desirable?

Think of forgiving, apologizing, acknowledging we’ve made a mistake, asking for forgiveness…to name a few.  These are all actions that are critical to relationships and our growth.  Failure to do these things when incidents happen radically affects the outcomes and the quality of our relationships.  It’s like trying to start a weed-whacker without turning the switch on!