Saturday, February 23, 2019
The Start Stops Most
Sharia leaned back in her chair, trembling. She wasn’t sure if she should laugh or cry and didn’t really understand the torrent of emotions that were flooding through her heart as she read the letter for the fourth time. The opportunity was incredible--literally unbelievable. Her application had been approved. A fortune 500 company was willing to give her the job of her dreams. It was her big break!
“So, why am I feeling hesitant?” she wondered. “Should I call them and tell them it was all a big mistake?” It was a no-brainer to take the job. It was everything she had ever wanted. She had applied for it, and even prayed for it. But, now that she held the acceptance letter in her hand, she was overwhelmed with fear. “I must be going crazy,” she thought, “what is going on with me?”
Even as those questions flashed through her mind she instinctively knew the answers. She was feeling hesitant because everyone important in her life had repeatedly reminded her that she was lacking. She was not crazy, she just didn’t want to hope, because she had hoped before, many times, and she had usually been so disappointed. Life had taught her not to get too excited about new adventures. People had counseled her to curb her enthusiasm. The pain of trying and failing had been so significant that she would rather deal with guaranteed failure than risk believing in success only to fall short again.
The number of people who can relate to Sharia might be surprising. Hope is such a wonderful thing that when it is not fulfilled it can be devastating to the heart. Cynicism and pessimism seem much safer than hope and optimism. Life can be brutal, and failure can feel so lonely. How does one survive, let alone thrive in the uphill endeavor of life? There are so many times that the start stops people from living adventures; they just don’t have the courage to step out.
The solution may be a simple change of focus. Instead of hoping in ourselves, our circumstances, or other people, what if we hoped in a good God who does not fix the world, but who empowers and comforts people so they can tackle life as it buffets and refines them? What if we embraced the fact that we will have setbacks and failures, understanding that those human traits need not define us? God invites us to take a journey with Him. Our success is not measured by what we accomplish or how much good fortune we have, it is measured by how much we let God help us deal with whatever we encounter.
God promises never to leave or forsake us (see Hebrews 13:15) and He promises to supply every need according to His resources (see Philippians 4:19). If you put your faith in God, life is no longer a matter of your performance; it is a matter of hoping in someone so much bigger than anything you will ever encounter. Believing this can give you the courage to make a fresh start… to hope again. It can help you believe that success is possible. There is so much good life to live, but the start stops most.
Monday, February 18, 2019
Truth Makes Free
Suppose
a private shuttle pilot was flying a single engine plane over the ocean and was
struck by an unidentified object. While attempting to radio for help he
realizes that his radio has been damaged. Soon, he notices a small stream of gas
spraying out the side of the engine housing. Being far from the mainland he
frantically redirects his small craft toward the nearest land mass. Luckily, twenty minutes later, just as he
approaches a sandy beach, his engine sputters to a stop and he glides safely onto
the remote, uninhabited island.
After
safely exiting the plane they discover an abandoned farm with a few crops that look
as though they had been growing wild for few years. They take shelter in the
house, eat some sandwiches from their cooler and become better acquainted. The older
passenger is an uneducated farmer and the other a young man who had just earned
a master’s degree, in physics. Both men begin offering solutions to their
dilemma.
The
young scholar says he thinks he might be able to alter the plane engine’s to
run on modified, potato juice. He read an article in which someone had
hypothesized that such a fuel might be made. But he had never done it before. The
farmer tells about how he used to make ethanol from corn. He had spotted corn on
the farm. If they could fix the gas leak and make a few gallons of ethanol they
could fly to their destination.
The
pilot is left with a simple choice; He has to decide which idea is most likely
to set them free. It is not just about being right for argument’s sake. It is
not about winning an intellectual debate. It is not about being politically
correct. It is about deciding whose solution would really work. The right
answer will be a matter of life and death. He chose the farmer’s tried and proven solution.
Life
puts us in situations similar to the pilot’s. We often need more than an easy
answer or a popular ideal. We need truth. Truth is not relative philosophy that
is concocted in the academia. Truth is not determined by polls. Truth is what
is real and right. It is something that wise men seek. Jesus said, “ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
(John 8:32)
Some
people seek truth like they shop – they look for the Madison avenue ads or
watch to see what everyone else is buying.
To make matters worse, people are often made to feel ashamed of beliefs that
don’t fit the trends, the norms or the opinions of the noisy people in a
culture. The results are not good.
Other
people search for truth as if their eternal life depends on it. They do not
seek truth so can feel superior to others. They are not trying to find it so
others will approve them. They are not just trying to prove themselves right
about their values and opinions. They
are seeking the truths of life that have been long proven to make people free.
Just
as scientists have discovered the acceleration of gravity, the boiling points
of liquids and how the water cycle
really works, believers have discovered inalienable truths that make people
free. Perhaps that is why the core truths of Christianity have outlived so many
world empires, so much anti-Christian bigotry, and so much persecution. For
centuries people have been warned that the truths taught by Jesus are mythology.
Some are shocked that they keep resurfacing. Truth resurfaces because it is
true, not because it is politically, culturally or socially embraced.
Throughout history some cultures have discovered incontrovertible truths such
as the 10 commandments and prosperity and freedom ensued to whatever extent
they lived by those truths. Most of those same cultures have also experienced a
decline when the people convince themselves to try cheap substitutes and
counterfeits. My prayer is that our culture will choose to seek truth rather
than arbitrarily deciding what they think is best, because truth makes free.
Friday, February 01, 2019
Gentle Power
Lester’s friends called him “the mountain.” Standing 6’7” tall and weighing in at 300
pounds guaranteed that he would stick out in most crowds. And, the fact that he
was a ripped, professional, linebacker increased the intimidation factor. Thus
the nickname.
But Lester’s most distinguishing feature was best
illustrated by the picture that graced their living room wall, in which he was
holding his 7 pound, 6 ounce, newborn daughter. She was sleeping contentedly on
his massive outstretched hand and forearm. Her little head lay in the palm of
his hand and her feet barely reached the crook of his elbow. For the first few
weeks of her life, she was so small and light that it required a great deal of
care on Lester’s behalf just to handle his new bundle of joy safely. But he did.
Lester’s daughter would grow up in the shadow of her
“mountain” knowing that he father’s strength was not something to fear, but
something that provided a place of safety and comfort. With great restraint her
father would always consciously soften his touch when his little girl jumped on
his lap or ran into his arms for a hug. Even as a teenager he could easily lift
her off her feet with one hand, but his power was so consistently used on her
behalf that she had nothing but respect for her father, affectionately calling
him her “gentle power”.
This powerful image reminds us of another mountain who can
be described as gentle power – God almighty. God towers above his creation. He
could crush us accidently if he was capable of having an accident. Some would
argue that he should crush some for their evil and hurtful behavior. Instead,
He has been gentle. Jesus (God in flesh) said it like this: “I am humble and gentle at heart.”
(Matthew 11:29 NLT)
Mankind has a history of lamenting, “If God is so powerful,
why doesn’t He do ______?” But God’s power is actually better demonstrated by
his restraint than by His action. The fact that God does not make mankind obey
him or love him, proves that God is not only powerful, but that He is loving and
gentle. When mankind disobeys God’s moral laws, the ramifications of those bad
behaviors are punishment enough. But God is so confident in who He is that He
rarely responds with demonstrations of power. He usually only demonstrates His
power to reassure us that he is our gentle power.
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