Throughout our lives we are, as Paul says in Philippians 2, to work out our salvation. This doesn’t mean, of course, that salvation can be achieved by our works. What he means is that we aren’t to stop when we accept Jesus Christ as our personal savior. One of the things he means is that we are to work on those areas in our character which are not in line with how God wants us to be. We are to work on making ourselves more like Christ. Smooth out the rough ground in us. I know God is working on me, as the children’s song goes, to make me who he wants me to be. That is not a passive activity. I need to be active in seeking to know what lesson He wants me to learn and doing what I can to be open to whatever it is, changing my behavior to reflect how Christ would respond rather than my messed up way. Years ago my sister-in-law and several of her friends had a singing group which preformed in various churches and events in the area. They sang a song that has come to represent my way of working on those aspects God wants me to change. The chorus is:
Go on and take another lap around Mt. Sinai Til you learn your lesson Till you stop your whining and you quit your rebellin' Till you learn to stand in your day of testin' By trustin' and obeyin' in the Lord Once God reveals the lesson I’m to be learning I pray that the Holy Spirit will make it evident to me when I react in the wrong way. I pray earnestly that I’ll recognize how I’ve messed up. When I do, then I reflect on how I acted, why I did, and pray to figure out how I should have reacted. God is always faithful and lets me know. Sometimes with a whap up-side the head with a spiritual two by four. This is when the chorus comes to mind. I need to take another lap around Mt. Sinai until I learn the lesson. Working on the rough ground that is me is hard work. It takes careful reflection and honest evaluation of the fact that I am not right. I need to humble myself before God, seeking his forgiveness and help. If I could change by myself I would, but I can’t, and I dare say you can’t either. I need God. It can take many, many, many laps around Mt. Sinai to learn the lesson. God has all the patience of time waiting for me to learn. The Holy Spirit lets me know when I need another lap, but that first time I respond in a Godly, or Christ-like manner I get a high I don’t think any drug or drink could ever match. All the glory for my success goes straight to God because it isn’t me who did it right, but God in me. I know I’ll need many, many more laps because changing my character is not easy. But the laps get fewer and farther between until the rough ground God has been working on has been worn smooth by my laps. Once I’ve learned, and can pretty consistently act correctly, God will give me a time of rest before he reveals the next roughness in me. At that time I gladly begin taking more laps so I can become more like Christ. Go on and take another lap around Mt. Sinai Til you learn your lesson Till you stop your whining
4 Comments
sk liew
7/22/2013 07:12:56 pm
Do you have this song piano chords? I need it for Church service worship. thanks
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I figured out the chords on the guitar.
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Dale West
9/16/2016 07:20:32 pm
I cannot find in the Scriptures where the Hebrews took laps around Mt. Sinai, or how long they were actually in that area. What Scripture verses is this song based upon?
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Michael Smith
4/4/2020 08:49:44 am
Thank you so much for posting this! I'm quarantined and just watched The Ten Commandments (1956) and was thinking of this song. We used to sing this at my Christian grade school with one of my teachers plucking a twelve-string guitar, her name was Chris Cowgill. She sang the verses and the entire school of about 300 children sang the chorus with great enthusiasm. One of my favorite childhood memories.
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