When Judy and I got married almost 53 years ago, we honeymooned near the Texas Gulf Coast. And as we started for home, I wanted to do what my family had often done on trips to Galveston and the Bolivar Peninsula. We pulled off the highway to cross a path through some small sand dunes to get to the beach. We wanted to spend some time walking along the beach, hand in hand, listening to the sound of the surf and the gulls as they flew overhead. Sounds romantic, right?

It would have been except for one thing. The sand dunes. My car got bogged down in the soft, dry sand and I couldn’t go forward or backwards. I tried to dig out the sand from around the wheels with my hands, but nothing worked. I was stuck.

After a while, a man came along with a shovel, and we tried to dig some more. We were still stuck. When I pressed the accelerator, the wheels would spin, but I could not go forward or backward. It was frustrating—and very unromantic!

Eventually someone in a truck passed by who had a chain and he was able to pull and jerk my dad’s 1963 Chevrolet and get us on to solid ground. I was thankful for a rather good ending to this true story.

I must confess, there have been other times in my life when I felt frustrated and it seemed like I was spinning my wheels. No matter what I tried, the end results were not good. Maybe you have felt that frustration, too.

In the book of Haggai, the Lord addressed His people with an explanation of some of their “wheel spinning” situations. Listen.

Look at what’s happening to you! You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes! Haggai 1:5-6 NLT

It sounds liked God’s people were spinning their wheels. And the Lord explained through Haggai what was going on, why His people were having so much trouble. They had been putting themselves and their comfort and prosperity above the Lord. Earlier God quoted what the Israelites had been saying. “The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.” (v.2) Yet, He said they were living in luxury and His house was in ruins.

I wonder how often we have neglected the important things of the Lord in order to be comfortable. I wonder how many times we have overlooked God’s will and God’s way so that we might fulfill our own ideas. Have I put myself and my plans above those of the Lord? Have I said, in effect, “Lord, I have a better idea. I’ll get around to You and Your way later.”

Listen to God’s Word:

Commit everything you do to the Lord.
Trust him, and he will help you.
Psalm 37:5 NLT

Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.
Proverbs 16:3 NLT

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.
Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT

A bit later in Haggai we see God’s promise to His people when they decided to put Him first and they began work on the temple.

I am giving you a promise now while the seed is still in the barn. You have not yet harvested your grain, and your grapevines, fig trees, pomegranates, and olive trees have not yet produced their crops. But from this day onward I will bless you.
Haggai 2:19 NLT

Let’s stop spinning our wheels. Let’s be sure we are putting the Lord and His ways…His plans…first. And then let’s see what happens in our lives and our ministries as the Lord keeps His promises to us.

God’s best,