There was a little box turtle named Wilbur…
Yesterday, as my Hubby and I were driving, we saw this little box turtle in the middle of the road trying to cross. As the cars went by he would stop and draw his head back into his shell. Poor little turtle. He had left the cover of the grass along the road, and had crossed a boundary into dangerous territory.
Seeing the little turtle made me think about a little box turtle named Wilbur. He lived in our basement for a long time when I was a little girl. He seemed to be very content. He had the run of the concrete basement and all the lettuce and water he could consume. I’m sure he ate plenty of bugs too. He had nothing to fear. He could only travel so far, until he ran into the boundary which was impossible for him to cross over (it was a concrete wall). Every family member watched carefully not to step on him. We moved away from our home on Madison street for a while, so we decided to move Wilbur to the backyard while we were gone. There was no way he could fend for himself in that basement for a long period of time. When we moved back to our home on Madison street, we were amazed to find Wilbur still living in the backyard. You might say, “maybe it wasn’t Wilbur, just another turtle”. But we knew it was Wilbur. We lived with him for a long time. Why was he still there, in that backyard? I guess he lived within the boundaries of that basement for so long, that when he was placed in the backyard, he was secure in traveling just so far. He was surely getting all his little turtle needs met in that backyard. So why should he cross over into dangerous territory. I know he didn’t reason all of that out, but you have to admit the ‘little turtle decision’ to stay in that backyard was a good one.
We’re like that little box turtle trying to cross the road sometimes. When I was young I crossed many boundaries, crossing into dangerous territory. My ‘Sis’ and I were talking the other day about some of those boundaries I crossed when I was young. I told her that there is no way I could cross those boundaries today. What was I thinking? I was crossing the boundaries of God, into dangerous territory.
Since the beginning, God has been setting boundaries for His creation. Just like Adam and Eve, there is a price to pay for crossing God’s boundaries. Just like that little box turtle crossing the road, he may have made it across yesterday, but if he continues to cross he will pay the price. We all need to be more like Wilbur the turtle. Become VERY aware of the boundaries of God and be content to stay within them.
The Word is a very good place to start, to learn where God’s boundaries are. The Word will infuse our hearts with His righteousness, His standards for living. Listen closely for the Holy Spirit, because He will touch our hearts and souls, of the ways of God. He will clearly identify those ”yes we shoulds” and “no we should nots” in life, and get us off that (middle of the road) fence when we need to get off.
Thoughts to Ponder: We find authority in God’s Word. The Holy Spirit springs into action in our lives through the Word. The Word helps us to discern ‘right’ from ‘wrong’. We find security within the boundaries of God, just as Wilbur the little box turtle found security within the boundaries of that basement and backyard.
Scripture to Ponder: Psalm 119 ~ An instruction manual devoted to aligning life with God’s Word
This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 26th, 2010 at 9:46 pm and is filed under Wisdom Wednesdays. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
