Hitching along for the ride is very general and interpretations vary from individual to individual. The variations also come up between the Christian and the world. If you are a Christian this includes you. If you are in the world this includes you. No one escapes this one! When we hitch a ride with someone or some ideology we carry along some agreement with them and their ideology. This isn't like hitch hiking or jumping a train. No hobo camp waiting at the end of the line. When you do either of these tasks, you have an open future and are open to that future being written moment by moment. Hitching along for the ride means that we have signed on to what we think we understand. We may "back" someone or something and later, upon being educated, find that we either don't want to have anything to do with this ride or that we didn't realize that our calling was staring us in the face. So, depending on the message, we move forward or we move away.
It's always easier to move away than it is to move forward. Choices like this are often the "saving grace" option. Many people live their lives looking for the exit. The quicker and easier the exit, the less we have to be responsible for. Sometimes our presence in a group, family, employment is deceiving. We have checked out or exited and no one either knows or cares. Sometimes we do this with logical arguments and sometimes we just go to our current addiction. People love to live without any thought of responsibility for anyone but themselves. And their pets. Take care of myself and leave everyone else alone. Maybe they will leave me alone as well. What we find is that the more we escape, the more we have to deal with and put time into that escape. Taking time to keep all of our stories, excuses and lies straight is important. None of which are elements described in the Christians life.
So, how do we exercise wisdom in hitching a ride? The first question is "Why?" Why do we want to hitch a ride in the first place. I've been invited to a number of Amway meetings under some very interesting guises. Many of you have also been there and done that. Any meeting that starts with deception isn't good. Not representing the truth is a sin. Not telling someone about the challenges of the Christian life when bringing them to Jesus is deception. I've heard so many say, "Everything will be great when you have Jesus." No, that isn't true. Everything will not be great unless you hitch along for the ride only to get off when the call gets tough. It's not so simple that a caveman can do it. That's true about so many different areas of life. So, what do we do? Always answer the "Why?" question. Don't dance around the answer. If God is prompting you to talk with someone about Jesus then He has already laid the groundwork. Just be honest! There is nothing better than to listen and know that the person speaking is speaking the truth as they know it.
Once you answer the "Why?" question, there are no other questions. Who, what, when, where and how are almost always answered by answering the "Why?" question. Hitch a ride with the one answering the "Why?" question. By the way that would be Jesus. Not me. Jesus. This is what will happen if you pursue this person Jesus. You will be changed. Maybe not instantly though that has happened as well. You will show that change. That change will entice others to seek the "Why?" question which should point to Jesus. They then can choose for themselves who or what they want to hitch along for the ride with. When things get tough, many ask to get off the ride. I've been there and done that. Not good! It's like parachuting; why jump out of a perfectly good plane? There is no really good reason outside the thrill. Once on THE ride, don't seek to get off regardless the temptations. Yes, you can get back on the ride. However, the reasons we are there and the reason for he ride will change because you have changed. Don't let failure lead you to give up. There is no reason that God will abandon you so don't abandon yourself.
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