Colorful horses galloping around in beautifully synchronized herds. Brightly painted structures with lights and loud sounds of joy and laughter; benches and rest for the tired and feeble to rest yet still be part of the group. You might think I am describing a race track, or park somewhere in the past, with horses and carriage rides as part of the day's normal series of events. Actually, I am thinking more along the lines of the great carousels that used to dot the countryside a few decades ago. If you look closely, you will still see a few grand ones here and there. From really large and extravagantly decorated ones in the popular theme parks to the modest few that you find at the country fair, carousels are still a popular ride with the young and old alike. Lines to ride them are full of every race, age, and personality type. Interestingly enough, the ride isn't just about one kind of horse or pony or one particular color. There are ponies that are dancing wildly and ones that look to be walking peacefully, and everything in-between. When you get on the ride, you search for just the right one, and suddenly, there it is. There isn't a way to describe it, maybe it's your favorite color, or the look painted on the horses face; perhaps it's just a mad rush to find an empty one. What about the real carousel with the two benches on it? Why the bench? Isn't this about the fast animals, and enjoying the "ride" and the wind? It seems that not everyone is ready, or able to sit in the saddle.
When I look at my life some days, it feels a lot like a carousel of craziness. A merry-go-round of work, kids, volunteerism, after-school sports, taking care of loved ones, and on and on. As young adults, we stand in line waiting for our chance to mount our life's steed. We pick the color and the type of "life" we think that we will lead, but in reality, most of the time, it's just a mad rush to find an open ride, to find our path onto, and around, the carousel of life. Wouldn't it be good just sometime, to sit on the bench? You see, sitting on this bench isn't like being out of the game, this bench is on the ride, just a little more laid back than the "mounted horses" part of life. I can certainly attest to my life being busy like that, too rushed to find a way to enjoy the view. I keep waiting for it to slow down so I can catch my breath, or change my position, but as we all know, you can't move around until the ride comes to a full and complete stop, and life rarely does.
The really interesting part that I learned about carousels was this, if you found yourself a little sick or dizzy, you could look at the center of the machine. This part usually housed the moving engine mechanisms. Sometimes it even held the organs and musical equipment of the older types; but best of all, it always seemed that it was just barely moving, in relation to the rest of the surroundings. With all of the outside structure rushing around, one horse chasing the horse in front of the other, the center of the whole thing seemed to move slowly, and with purpose. Focusing on this would give you less sense of movement, and it always helped me to feel better when I started getting green from going in circles.
If your life is a spiral of out of control dizziness and unobtainable goals, even a small part of the time, maybe it is time to focus on the center of your life. When you look at where your values and central thoughts lie, what do you find? Do you see your job, your impressive new car, or maybe your kid's latest sports schedule? Do you see the long list of needs or debt piling up? Let's imagine for a minute what God thinks of that picture.
All of your "stuff" at the center of your life, the focus not on Him, but on all of those things that you've labeled as important. It is no surprise then, when we find ourselves getting a little sick at the whirling cycle life has put us into.
In the ten commandments, which you can find in Exodus, one states to put no gods before the one true God. When we sacrifice so much of our life and time to a cause, whether it be work, hobbies or volunteerism, our center becomes focused on that function instead of on God, doesn't that make those things into gods in our life? He warns us about that, doesn't He? Not only is it detrimental to our spiritual relationship to Him, but then everything else suffers, marriages, children, everything.
In Proverbs, there is a suggestion that we should all remind ourselves of each time we consider taking on a new responsibility or job duty. It says, in everything you do, keep God number one, and He will guide your footsteps on a path to achievement. Again, we are reminded to keep God at the center of our work, our play, our marriages, you get the idea. Without that steady center to focus on, we can become ill and then the ride can get very, very uncomfortable.
In the excitement and rush to find your horse on the ride of life, we can easily forget that the center of the ride provides stability and safety from the whirling effects. And let's not forget, sometimes taking a seat on the bench for a round or two might provide you with a beautiful new perspective. Like I said earlier, it's not getting off the ride, its merely looking through a different window which allows us to take in some scenery or enjoy the faces of other riders a while. When you open your eyes in the morning, how is your sight? Is it spinning from riding the fastest horse that you can find? Do you keep looking outward to try to find a focal point in front of you to relieve your dizzying life?
Something to remember about the life path of whirling seasickness is this, we do not always cause those swirls on our own. They come from many different directions in life. Some are the results of what others do for or to us. You may be ill with a disease that has changed your life or handicapped by the negligence of another. It may very well be the schedule that you keep and what your "success" has cost you, or a load of caring for others has weighed upon you. Whatever the source of your roundabout life, there is one fortunate response. God still wants to be the center of it all. And with Him at the center, we can be sure that He will be working to make something good from our mess. In Colossians 3:2 He reminds us to keep our thoughts on things from Him, heavenly things, and NOT on things that surround you here on earth. That sounds like good advice. It also sounds a little like the Carousel thought that I shared earlier. Concentrate on what is at your life's center, if God is there, then no matter whether your on the fast, prancing, or walking horse, or just sitting a spell on one of the benches to watch the beauty of it all, your ride on the Carousel of life will always stay in focus.
Exodus 20:3 /Proverbs 3:6 /Colossians 3:2
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