December 2, 2005
Subject: Don't Just Change The Tires
2Timothy 3:5 - "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away."
I began to feel some vibration as I was driving along in my old 1991 BMW. I checked and noticed that the tires, although all bought at the same time, were getting really worn on the front while the back tires looked brand new, so I took it in to the shop to have it fixed. After about a week I called to see what was happening. Their answer, "we took the tires off of the back and put them on the front." My reply, "okay, did you fix whatever caused the tires to get worn out in the front like that?" Their reply, "oh, we'll have to check that out."
Sadly, that's the way many people live the Christian life. Their life gets a little rough and instead of fixing the real problem, they make cosmetic changes. Sometimes it may mean church-hopping because, "I didn't like that pastor" or it could be changing jobs or moving to another city because, "I couldn't get along with those people." Those are acts of simply "changing the tires" in our lives when we need a real and permanent fix.
The scripture above talks about those who simply try to maintain appearances or those who may appear to have it right, but are missing the real solution. That's what we do when we neglect to fix the problems in our lives.
Like my car, we are going to sustain some wear and tear as we journey the bumpy roads of life. If we are determined to simply rotate the tires, we'll find that the problem just keeps coming back. Today if you are having a recurring problem with vibration, don't just change the tires, check the front end. That's where the problem is.
Carlen
