Finishing Well...I Never Thought I Would...

Have you ever said about an area or issue of your life, I never thought I would have done... (fill in blank).  We most likely all have and the real question is, how did we get to a place we said we would never arrive at?  The life of Solomon speaks to this reality.  

1 Kings 11:4 For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.6 So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David his father had done. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. 8 And so he did for all his foreign wives, who made offerings and sacrificed to their gods.

This is quite a long way from the day where he asked God for wisdom so that he could govern God's people well in regard to what is good and evil (1 Kings 3:3-9).  What brought about this change for Solomon?  Here are some thoughts:  1.  Live with a vision for the last day of our life - "When he was old".  If we do not live with a vision of finishing well, we will not make all the right decisions along the way to get there.  2.  Who we Surround ourselves with can make all the difference- "his wives turned his heart after other gods".  It does not appear that Solomon surrounded himself with men who would keep him living in the right way.  

It is here where it all fell apart for Solomon.  The road to compromise will always lead to a cliff and as crazy as it may seem, some are willing to step off the cliff for the thrill of whatever it is.  It never ends up well either. This I have found to be true in my life and in the lives of others:

What we tolerate - We eventually will approve of - then, ultimately we will participate in   

When we leave God out of our lives we will be capable of doing anything, even that which we never thought we would do.  Solomon's prayer to God early on was to govern people with an eye on what is good an evil and in his old age he threw all of this out the window.  In his old age he allowed that which was evil to be established throughout Israel as he allowed the worship of Chemosh and Molech.

So, what is the answer to finishing well?  It lies in worship and the nearness of God.  We are capable of anything if we do not live in the nearness of God.  Let us draw near today and stay there, live there, breath there and die there.  That is how we can finish well.