Acknowledging And Mending The Drift

We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. (Heb 2:1) See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. (Heb 3:12) For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. (Heb 4:2, 14-15)


Drifting. We can drift. God’s word informs us to be on guard for this. Drifting away from God is a fact. The movement would be hardly noticeable; lost in the confusion and business of our daily lives. It would seem to happen without our choice. We would fault business and distraction, anything but ourselves. But, I fear, it is because we make certain choices and because we have not paid careful attention that we actually drift. What does your life tell you? Have you drifted? Do you and I care for and safe guard that which God has bestowed on us, what we have heard from Him? How could we tell? What would you and I use to know? Are you in any way adrift right now?

Unbelieving. If you have drifted, thus no longer believing and living as you once might have (especially regarding foundational aspects of the Christian faith and their influence on your life), perhaps you’ve drifted to the point where there has even been an unfortunate, yet defining, turn away from God Himself. If honest, I trust you would see and confess this. Reader, do you believe you have drifted from God and now evidence aspects of an unbelieving life? To what degree? Have you drifted so far that the shore of God’s presence is no longer even in sight? What does your life say? Are you in any way unbelieving?

Friend, I, like so many others, waiver in my love for God and my love for people, my relation to God’s word, and actually living God’s word. Living by principles other than God’s love (generally, the alternative is self-interest) my heart is not always toward God or His word. Thus, I’m adrift. My mooring is undone. I move across the sea of my emotions, fears, memories, self-interest, finding in every place the world’s affirmation that “this way” of moving through life is valid and justified. Yet, drifting on the world’s currents leads to compounding confusion created by ungodly thoughts and passions, thereby fostering and strengthening my life of unbelief. It is an ugly and completely ungodly place to expect to find one’s self and try to live life from. My heart grows colder this way. I feel further separated from God and others, and I as a natural course take greater refuge in the citadel of my fleshly soul (alone, yet perversely comforted that I’m with me). I’m left to myself and the world’s spirit (which can also, and only, be cold). God does not redeem people to live adrift, to live in unbelief, to live separated to self. This is not why He gave His Son.

You and I are weak, friend, with respect to our paying attention, safeguarding godly beliefs which become godly lives, and living out godly love. We are not careful. We so commonly do not combine what of God we hear with the faith we’ve been granted as a gift, thus we don’t experience true godly life. Neither do others through us. We need to confess this sad condition when we find it. Then again, perhaps I am alone on this. Perhaps it is only me who experiences these unfortunate states. But, I believe otherwise. I believe both you and I are together subject to unbelief, to drifting, to turning away from God. We are casualties of all these conditions, because of our insufficient care and concern for our hearts, we don’t believe God, and we do not live from the principle of God’s love.

But Jesus knows you are tempted to live in ways that cool your godly affections and ignite fleshly fires. You must be aware that Jesus continually knows your condition. He knows you better than you know yourself. And He cares. If you have been reconciled to the Father through Christ, He is not your enemy. When we are faithless, He remains faithful. Thus, you and I should be easily compelled to live constantly on guard, and know when drifting and unbelief have occurred, then seek Christ, confessing to Him what He already knows about us. Again, there are no grounds for fear at this point, unless one is not being truly honest with God or has never encountered His grace.

Father above, where Christ Your Son is stationed at Your side, You love me and those reconciled to You through Your Son. You gave us Your Son and Your word, so we can know You and sufficiently know ourselves and preserve the wonder of life with You throughout our earthly days. You’ve warned me to watch my heart. You’ve told me I’m subject to doubting You. You’ve clearly told me I can drift, become totally turned away from You through my unbelief and sin, my alternate desire then being to live by self-rule or that of the world. But I have a confidence, Father. My confidence is in Your Son, the very one seated to Your right. You see Him, hear Him, and You love Him. Lord Jesus, as my great high priest, as my confidence, as my advocated before Your Father and my Father, You always know my condition. Turn me back toward You. Take me away from that which I have set as god for myself. Restore the notion and reality of Your love to me and let that reality anchor my soul sufficiently to prevent the drift again. Restore Your word as light for my life. May Your word always find union with faith in my heart and may my life thus bear lasting fruit to Thee and benefit others. Forgive me Father for not believing You. May I pay more careful attention and honor all You have provided me through Your Son. Thanks be to You Father, Lord Jesus, and Spirit of God. Amen.


“Jesus, seek thy wandering sheep;
Bring me back, and lead, and keep;
Take on thee my every care,
Bear me, on thy bosom bear;
Let me know my Shepherd’s voice,
More and more in thee rejoice;
More and more of thee receive;
Ever in thy spirit live,--

Live till all thy life I know,
Foll’wing thee, my Lord, below;
Gladly then from earth remove,
Gathered to thy fold above:
Oh, that I at last my stand
With the sheep at they right hand,
Take the crown so freely given,
Enter in by thee to heaven!”

(author believed to be Charles Wesley)