Wednesday; September 20

Is it just me or is anyone else annoyed by those beeping noises made by various types of vehicles?  The ones on garbage trucks start going off at 4:30 a.m. and the construction equipment used in the roadwork out in front of our office beeps throughout most of the day.  These are irritating enough, but the ones that takes the cake are the golf carts used in airport terminals.  For some reason, that noise just drives me up the wall.  Now, having exposed my bias there is one thing that I have to admit about the beeping – it works.  These vehicles have installed beepers for one reason, to get our attention.  They are designed to make sure we are aware that they are in the area and we need to steer clear of them.
Does our conscience annoy us?  Have you ever wondered why God instilled a conscience in humans?  No, it was so that He could make us feel bad, the reason for our conscience is to get us to steer clear of the things that might cause us to get hurt.  Just like that incessant beeping of dangerous equipment, the tweaking provided by our inner voice is designed to warn us and if that subtle hint isn’t enough, it is destined to keep up the pressure until we change our ways.
When the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth he touched a nerve that caused some of them to be sorry for what they had done (in essence, he pricked their consciences).  In a follow-up message to them he made sure that they understood his goal wasn’t to make them feel bad, rather to get them to change their ways.  He encouraged them by writing, “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.” (II Corinthians 7:10)
Is something bugging us – something that we can’t seem to shake?  Maybe the incessant reminder is our conscience calling us to repentance.
          Think About It!

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