And do this, understanding the present time. 

The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber,

because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

Romans 13:11, NIV (1978)

 

We moved to Wyoming on my 15th birthday. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this part of the world, suffice it to say that you can get some pretty big snows anywhere from late September to early June. So, if you are going to do any driving, you will likely spend a fair share of time driving in snow. 

 

It also means you are going to spend time stuck in that snow, so you have to learn how to get unstuck, especially since there are vast stretches of road where you might not have anyone to help you. I learned from my dad that when you get stuck you don't just floor the gas and hope for good things. The most likely outcome for those who try that method will be to either spin out of control and end up somewhere you don't want to be, or you will bury your car up to the axels so bad that you are going to have to get someone to give you a tow. And if you can't find anyone to give you a tow, you are going to have to dig yourself out as best you can. Dad taught me that the best way to get out of that rut is to rock the car back and forth, going from forward gear to reverse. That way every time you get a little traction, you can go a little farther in one direction or another until you are out of the rut and on your way. Slow, easy, and under control is the ticket for getting out of most of the ruts that I have found myself in - and I have been in more than my share of ruts through the years.

 

Life, I have found, is a lot like driving in Wyoming. There are times you get stuck in a rut and your first inclination is to put the gas pedal to the floor and try to get out. The problem with this method is not in the desire to get out of the rut you are in; no, the problem comes in when you find that your lack of planning and impatience just sent your life careening out of control. What's more, when you finally do come get yourself back under control, you are likely going to find yourself in a bigger rut and buried up to your axels.

 

Do you ever feel like that?

 

Sometimes we find ourselves so buried in the ruts of our own making that we just feel stuck. It may be that we have tried to escape our rut, but we have only dug ourselves in deeper. At this point, many people will simply give up. Sadly, those who do are usually in the majority. Most people, when you really think about it, live a great deal of their lives stuck in a rut. Do you ever feel that way? Maybe you feel that way right now, but what can you do?

 

We can begin with the first rule of the rut: Stop and look around long enough to see how deep the rut is where you are currently lodged, and then look to see where the nearest place is where you will have a clear path so that you don't just find yourself in a new rut after having expended so much effort to escape the old. This is why many people fail in life: It's not that they haven't tried to get out of their ruts, it's just that when they finally got out, that they drove themselves right into a new one. So, decide where it is you want to go before you attempt to get out of your rut.

 

This requires a different mindset than most of us have had, so take this step seriously. Where is it you want to go in life?

 

For many of us, that place is heaven. If this is the case for you, let's see how we might "clear a path" to get there. It begins something like this:

 

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 7:13-14, NIV (1978)

 

So, the path that we want to get on is the straight and narrow one. If we want to get out of our ruts in life, we are going to have to leave that broad path and get on the straight and narrow. It sounds daunting, but it really isn't. Most of those who are successful in escaping their ruts are those who seek help. And they don't just seek help from anyone; they seek it from those who are not stuck in the rut themselves. In our case, the One who can provide that expert assistance is God - so pray to Him for your help. Then you can start reading your Bible in order to find the right way back onto that narrow path. Then you can begin worshipping on a regular basis so that you can be with others who not only have found where that straight and narrow path is by reading the Word for themselves, but who also have the ability and desire to help you find that path and then stay on it.

 

I know that this sounds too simple, but I believe you will find that most of the truly worthwhile things in life are basically simple. That doesn't mean that they will be easy to do, but we can understand what it is that needs to be done. The fact is that many of us have gotten into ruts so deep that the only thing to do is to start the hard work of getting ourselves dug out. Again, this is not rocket science, but it is surprising how few people in life seem to be able to grasp the simple concepts that will make them successful. 

 

For example: If you want to get rich (or at least financially secure) you are going to have to spend less than you make and put something into savings so you can invest. The truth of this is easy to see, but the vast majority of people in life fail to grasp it all the same. In a like manner, if you want to lose weight, you are going to have to stop eating as much as you are now - you might even (oh horror of horrors) have to start eating healthier! Again, this is easy to see, but hard to do. Worthwhile things take effort.

 

If you find yourself in a rut, it is likely that you have gotten into that rut under your own power and as a result of your own bad decisions. It's true that you may have been "nudged" into that rut (there have been "influencers out there since Adam and Eve were tempted by the evil one to take a bite of that forbidden fruit) but the fact is that we are all responsible for our own ruts. And, in the off chance that you really were put there by some wicked person, it will still be up to you to get out of that rut, 

 

This will mean work!

 

So, let's get to that work. Praying to God for help might seem cliche to some, but it is the only place to begin. Start reading your Bible for purpose. Most people either do not read it at all or, if they do, they dabble. They wander without purpose like a drunk driver in a blizzard, and then they are surprised when they find themselves in a ditch somewhere. So, ask God for help and then look to His entire Word for direction. You also are going to have to get back to worshipping with the church on a regular basis. I know that this will cut into your leisure time but do it we all must if we are to have any hope of getting out of our ruts. One word of caution on this: Some so-called "churches" are just ruts in disguise. The Apostle Paul warned us in II Corinthians 11:14 that Satan "masquerades as an angel of light". So, when you are searching for a church, make sure you get a good description of it from the Bible. It is, after all, Christ's church, so make sure that you don't get fooled by one that is really a church of men with worldly ideas. 

 

All of these things will take hard work, it's true, so brace yourselves for the work. You can get out of your rut if you want to, but if you really don't want to put in the hard work that will dig you out of your rut, you will have to be honest enough with yourself to realize that you don't want to get out of that rut bad enough. However, for those who do, there is a straight and narrow path that leads to life. It is hard to be sure, but it really is the best way to live. And, at the end of this hard but pleasant path, there will be heaven! 

 

Do you find yourself in a rut? Welcome to the club! Now, let's do something about it!