THE OLD CLOTHESLINE

Whither shall I go from thy spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from thy
presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there:
if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
If I take the wings of the morning, and
dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
Even there shall thy hand lead me,
and thy right hand shall hold me.
Psalm 139:7-10

Someone put a picture on my Face book last week of a backyard with clotheslines. The caption on the picture said, “Do you remember this?” I remember replying to myself, “Boy do I ever.” As soon as I could begin to reach a clothesline, my Mother had me hanging wet clothes on those lines every Monday. We always had good sturdy clotheslines, but they also served another purpose in my own life from when I was about four years old and maybe even a little younger.

My husband will tell you and perhaps my children as well, that I am a wanderer. We can go into a grocery store or Wal-mart and Brian knows to keep an eye on me all the time or he'll lose me. I don't notice that I wander. I forget I'm even with anyone so if I spot something down an aisle or think of something I need to get, I just take off to find it. I think it's been this way as long as I can remember.

However, this tendency of mine began when young. MANY years ago, when I was just a little thing, life was friendly, simple and safe. As a little girl, I loved going from neighbor to neighbor just to say hello. Folks on our side of the street on our block just expected to see me on a regular basis. The problem with that friendly spirit was that when my Mother would look for me in our yard, I wasn't there. She knew I was okay, but just not just where exactly.

Mother devised a plan. To help break me from my wandering, she would tie a rope around my waist, rope the thickness of a jump rope. The rope wasn't the length of a jump rope though. The other end of that rope was thrown over a clothes line and tied in a knot that easily moved back and forth on the line. It was long enough for me to reach the back steps of the house and the out house. It wasn't long enough, however, for me to leave the back yard. I hated that rope. I knew it's purpose. but no matter how many times I was tied to the clothesline, I was still prone to wander.

Aside from my tendencies to wander physically, I must confess to you that, as much as I hate admitting it, I'm also prone to wander spiritually. By the way, I'm not the only one with this particular problem. Satan is a pro in placing inviting things in our way that may not seem to be of any particular danger. There is an older hymn we have sung with the following phrase:

“Prone to wander, Lord I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love.”

After having had three children, I know the panic a mom feels when looking for a child where he or she is supposed to be and aren't where they are supposed to be. However, I didn't understand my Mother's concern at the time, but after becoming a parent, I knew her concern all too well. Parents can't be everywhere all the time and I'm not sure they would even want to be, but with a wandering little girl, I think my Mother would have appreciated some kind of help.

For years, I have dearly loved Psalm 139. It is full to the brim regarding God's knowledge and care of each of us. The blessing in it all is no matter where we are or where we go, His presence is always with us. Whether we stand, sit, lay in bed, go for a walk, wander through a department store, He is with us. He also is with us when spiritually wandering. We live in a world so different from the little four year old girl I was. The worse thing in the world to happen to me was to be tied to that dreaded clothesline like a puppy dog. (Yep, some folks did that with their little dogs). Now we see a plummeting culture leaving long-established morals and ethics far behind with no restraints.

As an adult, it's my responsibility to keep my spiritual wandering in check. The Holy Spirit will empower me to do what is right and godly, it becomes my responsibility to yield to that leadership and not to the mentality of the world Satan seems to have such a hold on.

I'm glad that clothesline of yore is only a memory now. I find that God has His ways of putting me in check when called for. I never want to get away from His discipline and correction. Whatever form His clothesline takes in my life, I recognize it, as I do now with my Mother, that it's an instrument of love in my life.

Dear Father, I'm grateful for Your guidance and correction in my life. I don't mean to wander from Your ways. I'm sorry for those times I disappoint You. I'm so grateful for Your love and discipline in my life. I love You....in Jesus' name....Amen