Guardrails: Do you have yours?

[oyster67]

We talked about guardrails the other night at Young Adult Bible Study and I found it really refreshing... Obviously, I cannot go into the depth that the video did, by Andy Stanley, but if you are interested feel free to look it up. I'm not sure if its online...

It focused on the following versus.

Ephesians 5:15-21

New International Version (NIV)

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Basically, for this discussion sake, guardrails, like the real ones, are needed in our personal daily lives, defined as: A personal standard of behavior that becomes a matter of conscience. We need guardrails in every significant area of our lives, because they protect us from the danger zones, where we'll likely be hurt. These guardrails help us to avoid the big regrets of life. Guardrails aren't there to prevent accidents, but they are there to protect us from whatever is on the other side of the guardrail, or are there to prevent injuries from becoming death; like God tries to protect us from being swallowed up in sin and creating scars for ourselves.

Society often draws the line for us, but does not put up guardrails. However, God does provide these, but sometimes we can be ignorant or unaware of them. And often the Holy Spirit speaks to us to reveal danger zones. Guardrails should be personal, because we all have different weaknesses.

I could go verse by verse interpretation, but it would be more interesting to see everyone's interpretation and opinion.

And like in my signature, he pointed out something that really caught my attention that made me realized that this is why I've had so many downfalls in life... The problem isn't that people plan to screw up their lives, its that they don't have a plan not to.

Questions to think about:

• Do you have guardrails in your life? (Morally, ethically, in relationships, spiritually, financially, sexually, hobbies, personal struggles, and the list goes on)
• Have you screwed up because you lacked these guardrails?
• How has God been speaking to you in terms of this? What areas are you weak in that He is desiring you to protect yourself from?

Amen to the part about how people don't necessarily plan to screw up their lives. There are so many pitfalls out there; Satan's deceptions, peer pressure, lack of sound doctrine, and the list goes on. We need to be merciful to one another. Ephesians 4:32 tells us what to do.

Amen to the part about guardrails needing to be personal. We can't go around trying to cram our own set of guardrails down other peoples throats. Please note that there is a difference between sound doctrine(absolutes) and guardrails tailored to individual difficulties.

 

[RedTent]

I absolutely love the idea of guardrails. I always think of all the instructions the bible gives us as the best way to live within how God constructed our world to result in the most blessings for us as just like guardrails on a road that we walk.

It seems to me that those guardrails we are given are complete, though. Not if we read them legalistically. Those given for people who lived before Christ's blood was used instead of the symbol of His blood, and the temple and high priest was taken over by Christ, there were no prisons and oxen were transportation instead of cars, read legalistically make no sense. And the instructions of Moses for a society that really works can't be read legalistically, either. But in spirit and truth they apply completely to our world today.