Thermometers vs. Thermostats

This devotional is based on material I heard in a sermon preached by Pastor Don Gettys. Read the entire sermon  here.

Last month I was in church and heard a really good sermon by Pastor Don Gettys. He was talking about kids, however, he used the illustration of thermometers and thermostats. I shall endeavor to explain and recap here what he said.

Thermostats are critical to have in the winter. Along with fireplaces, they are a main way to keep warm. Thermometers measure the temperature in a room. They don't change their surroundings like thermostats do; they merely announce their surroundings.

As I listened to Pastor Gettys' sermon, and as I've thought about this subject more, I've realized that there are several lessons we can learn from this analogy of thermometers and thermostats. It's easy to be a thermometer--you can find these kinds of people everywhere. They are swayed by their surroundings, and are often cold or lukewarm. These kinds of people are certainly not proactive, definitely not thermostats. They are just thermometers, announcing the temperature in the room or their lives.

One might think that thermostats are similar to thermometers. Hey, they have the same first couple letters! But thermostats are a far cry different from thermometers.
Thermometers just announce the temperature, while thermostats change the temperature. They react to life, instead of just being swayed and changed like thermometers are. Thermostats are in charge, they have authority. If their surroundings are not to their liking, they change their surroundings, for the better!

People can, if they wish, be thermostats too. They can look around, and if they want to change something, they change it! Thermostats are in charge of their lives, and with Jesus, they know they can have an awesome life, going where they want to go. Instead of just being swayed by their surroundings, they change their surroundings for the better.

I suspect we all can now see what we truly want to be. We want to be thermostats and change the world, not just merely announce our surroundings like thermometers do. Are you a thermostat? Great! Keep at it! Are you a thermometer, wishing you had more control over your life? Good! You've realized you need to change. Ask God to help you change and be proactive. Being a proactive thermostat may mean many things, but they all boil down to initiating something, instead of just letting life pass you by, or letting life come to you.

"I can do everything through him (God) who gives me strength."
~ Philippians 4:13, NIV (italics, parentheses added)

With God's help, you can change. Be a thermostat!