Imagine you are and driving down Interstate 40 and have a flat tire.
You ignore it and keep driving with some difficulty and soon discover you have two flat tires. lf you keep ig noring the problem, th e strain on the remaining two tires will blow them out as well.
It' s difficult to drive on one flat tire, more difficult to drive with two flat tires and impossible to go anywhere when all four tires are flat. The damage to the vehicle in creases with each passing moment.
In our analogy, the first fl at tire is the spiritual one we are born with, before we know Jesus as Lord and Savior. The first responsibility as parents is not to teach our kids the rules of the most popular sport or how to be a financial success, but to teach them who Jesus is and why we desperately need His gift of Life and salvation.
When we neglect that primary responsibility, we have failed massively as parents and we send our children down the road of life with a flat tire.
With one flat, it's possible to maintain the illusion of control for a while. But as we swerve through life, destroying relationships and opportunities, it soon results in an emotional flat tire as we practice attitudes of fear, resentment, anger, bitterness, worry and a multitude of other bad emotional habits.
The strain of carrying negative emotions will soon result in some form of what our culture likes to call "mental illness." "Experts" who are ignorant of the spiritual flat tire try to inflate mental and emotional flat tires with chemicals. When prescriptions fail, people 'shop doctors' and/or turn to illegal drugs and providers.
This misuse of chemicals produces the fourth flat tire of physical sickness and addiction. When we have four flat tires - spiritual, emotional, mental and physical - we become paralyzed by fear, unable to move.
When we don' t spend time with the Lord, we come to believe one or more "flat tires" is normal. Even many who claim a new birth experience have adapted to the limitations of flat tires because they've been taught there's really nothing that can be done about it. So they limp through life; hopel ess; never expecting anything to get better.
God's Word has a different perspective. This pers pective is one even most believers aren't aware of because time with the Lord has been reduced to a 10- or 20-minute devotion al reading every day called "quiet time". This often doesn' t include reading the Bible, but reading what someone else says the Bible says.
The Bible teaches us how to "change our tires."
"Teach me, Lord, the meaning of Your statutes; I will always keep them. He! p me understand Your instruction; I will obey it and follow it with all my heart. Turn my eyes from looking at what is worthless; give me life in Your ways." (Psalms 119:33-34, 37 HCSB)
"This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth ; you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may do according to all that is written in it. Then you shall make your way prosperous; then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord Leadina people to Wholeness and Freedom tkouah Goers lnlinite Grace. your God is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1 :8-9 AMPC)
"His delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His instructions and the teachings of God he habitu ally ponders and studies by day and night." (Psalm 1:2 AMPC)
It takes diligence, persis tence and time to know God and His Word. Unlike the chemicals we have become so accustomed to, the only sideaffects are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, fai th, meekness and temperance. The Word fixes flats.
Send questions or comments to drdixie@drdixie.org.