Straight

Amos 7: 7-15 “I will hold a plumb line in the middle of my people Israel. I will no longer overlook what they have done.”

In helping my Mum hang wallpaper, we used a plumb line that belonged to her father. A weighted pointed object that we hung from a string. It hung straight on the wall, and we drew a line and started hanging the paper from that line. Amos was also familiar with a plump line used to keep a wall straight. God used this familiar tool as an image to see how “straight” the people of Israel were in following His rules. God was not prepared to overlook their transgressions.

The King at the time hearing bad things about himself from the prophet told Amos to go away, to prophesy somewhere else. Who wants to hear they are not doing a good job? It is hard to accept criticism even from someone you feel is wise. That disaster will strike you because of the path your are deciding to take. Poor Amos replied with a similar message we often hear today. Don’t shoot the messenger!

As Christians there is no guaranteed that our lives will be perfect but the choice to stay on the straight path following God is a daily choice to make. CrossWalk uses the image of a crosswalk to keep Christ represented by the cross on our path as we walk with Him.

Prayer; Holy Lord, guide me along your path today and every day. Amen