Difficulties With Man's Will

What are the difficulties of going our own way? Going our own way means there is no upward direction except in the eyes of others. Going our way means there is no eternal hope for our life. In addition, any hope we carry within us is something we have to generate on our own. Going our way means we will experience suffering and pain without purpose. If by chance, we discover a purpose to our pain and suffering, the purpose is a purpose we must assign rather than a purpose assigned by God. In addition, going our own way means we will carry within us an emptiness and darkness. Persons who are self-consumed and self-absorbed drink alcohol and use drugs to ease the pain of the emptiness and darkness. When we go our way instead of God's way there is an inner gnawing making us feel the need to run and run and run to get away from being eaten up by our darkness.

The Master's Hand

Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother took the small boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her. Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE." When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that her son was missing. Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit, keep playing." Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child and he added a running obligato. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was mesmerized. That's the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't exactly graceful flowing music. But with the hand of the Master, our life's work truly can be beautiful. Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit, keep playing." Feel His loving arms around you. Know that His strong hands are playing the concerto of your life. Remember, God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called.

Author Unknown 

He Gave His Only Son

After a few of the usual Sunday evening hymns, the church's pastor slowly stood up, walked over to the pulpit and, before he gave his sermon for the evening, briefly introduced a guest minister who was in the service that evening. In the introduction, the pastor told the congregation that the guest minister was one of his dearest childhood friends and that he wanted him to have a few moments to greet the church and share whatever he felt would be appropriate for the service. With that, an elderly man stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak. "A father, his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific Coast," he began, "when a fast approaching storm blocked any attempt to get back to shore. The waves were so high that, even though the father was an experienced sailor, he could not keep the boat upright, and the three were swept into the ocean as the boat capsized." The old man hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking somewhat interested in the story. The aged minister continued with his story. "Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy he would throw the other end of the lifeline. He only had seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian, and he also knew that his son's friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of the waves. As the father yelled out, 'I love you, son!', he threw out the lifeline to the son's friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black of night. His body was never recovered." By this time, the two teenagers were sitting up straight in the pew, anxiously waiting for the next words to come out of the old minister's mouth. "The father," he continued, "knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus, and he could not bear the thought of his son's friend stepping into an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save the son's friend. How great is the love of God that He could do the same for us. Our heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son that we could be saved. I urge you to accept His offer to rescue you and take hold of the lifeline." With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair as silence filled the room. The pastor again walked slowly to the pulpit and delivered a brief sermon with an invitation at the end. However, no one responded to the appeal. Within minutes after the service, the two teenagers were at the old man's side. "That was a nice story," politely said one of the boys, "but I don't think it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son's life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian." "Well, you've got a point there," the old man replied, glancing down at his worn Bible. Sorrow began to overtake the old man's smiling face as he once again looked up at the boys and said, "It sure isn't very realistic, is it? But I'm here today to tell you that I understand more than most the pain God must have felt to give up His only Son. For you see, I'm the man who lost his son to the ocean that day, and my son's friend that I chose to save is your pastor."

God's Under the Bed

My brother Kevin thinks God lives under his bed. At least that's what I heard him say one night. He was praying out loud in his dark bedroom, and I stopped outside his closed door to listen. "Are you there, God?" he said. "Where are you? Oh, I see. Under the bed." I giggled softly and tiptoed off to my own room. Kevin's unique perspectives are often a source of amusement. But that night something else lingered long after the humor. I realized for the first time the very different world Kevin lives in. He was born 30 years ago, mentally disabled as a result of difficulties during labor. Apart from his size (he's 6'2"), there are few ways in which he is an adult. He reasons and communicates with the capabilities of a 7-year-old, and he always will. He will probably always believe that God lives under his bed, that Santa Claus is the one who fills the space under our tree every Christmas, and that airplanes stay up in the sky because angels carry them. I remember wondering if Kevin realizes he is different. Is he ever dissatisfied with his monotonous life? Up before dawn each day, off to work at a workshop for the disabled, home to walk our cocker spaniel, returning to eat his favorite macaroni-and-cheese for dinner, and later to bed. The only variation in the entire scheme is laundry days when he hovers excitedly over the washing machine like a mother with her newborn child. He does not seem dissatisfied. He lopes out to the bus every morning at 7:05 eager for a day of simple work. He wrings his hands excitedly while the water boils on the stove before dinner, and he stays up late twice a week to gather our dirty laundry for his next day's laundry chores. And Saturdays -- oh, the bliss of Saturdays! That's the day my dad takes Kevin to the airport to have a soft drink, watch the planes land, and speculate loudly on the destination of each passenger inside. "That one's goin' to Chi-car-go!" Kevin shouts as he claps his hands. His anticipation is so great he can hardly sleep on Friday nights. I don't think Kevin knows anything exists outside his world of daily rituals and weekend field trips. He doesn't know what it means to be discontent. His life is simple. He will never know the entanglements of wealth or power, and he does not care what brand of clothing he wears or what kind of food he eats. He recognizes no differences in people, treating each person as an equal and a friend. His needs have always been met, and he never worries that one day they may not be. His hands are diligent. Kevin is never so happy as when he is working. When he unloads the dishwasher or vacuums the carpet, his heart is completely in it. He does not shrink from a job when it is begun, and he does not leave a job until it is finished. But when his tasks are done, Kevin knows how to relax. He is not obsessed with his work or the work of others. His heart is pure. He still believes everyone tells the truth, promises must be kept, and when you are wrong, you apologize instead of arguing. Free from pride and unconcerned with appearances, Kevin is not afraid to cry when he is hurt, angry or sorry. He is always transparent, always sincere. And he trusts God. Not confined by intellectual reasoning, when he comes to Christ, he comes as a child. Kevin seems to know God -- to really be friends with Him in a way that is difficult for an "educated" person to grasp. God seems like his closest companion. In my moments of doubt and frustrations with my Christianity, I envy the security Kevin has in his simple faith. It is then that I am most willing to admit that he has some divine knowledge that rises above my mortal questions. It is then I realize that perhaps he is not the one with the handicap -- I am. My obligations, my fears, my pride, my circumstances -- they all become disabilities when I do not submit them to Christ. Who knows if Kevin comprehends things I can never learn? After all, he has spent his whole life in that kind of innocence, praying after dark and soaking up the goodness and love of the Lord. And one day, when the mysteries of heaven are opened, and we are all amazed at how close God really is to our hearts, I'll realize that God heard the simple prayers of a boy who believed that God lived under his bed. Kevin won't be surprised at all. Author Unknown 

SEE PAST THE END OF THE GAME

 You may not be the "law enforcement" type of person. However, in any life, in any company, in any family, in any circumstance where we hope to avoid chaos, rules have to be enforced. In every circumstance, we need to provide or build mechanisms to enforce rules because people break rules. Some people break rules because they have limited self-control and limited self-discipline. Other people break rules by accident. Still, other people break rules out of spite, anger, or carelessness. Plain and simple, someone always needs to be assigned the task of enforcing rules. If there is no one to enforce the rules, rules will be broken without any thought for the consequences. By having a person in charge of rule enforcement, people will think twice about breaking the rules.

How Much Does a Prayer Weigh

Louise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work. They had seven children and they needed food. John Longhouse, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said: "Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can." John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store. Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, "Do you have a grocery list?" Louise replied, "Yes sir." "Okay," he said, "put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries." Louise hesitated a moment with a bowed head. Then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed. The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scale went down and stayed down. The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, "I can't believe it." The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more. The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement. It was not a grocery list. It was instead a prayer which said: "Dear Lord, you know my needs and I am leaving this in your hands." The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store. The customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said, "It was worth every penny of it." It was sometime later that the grocer discovered the scales were broken; therefore, only God knows how much a prayer weighs.  

Author Unknown 

People Have Questions

People have questions about God, and questions about what He does. Some of these questions are hard questions. People ask things like, "Where are the answers when I need answers but no answers can be found?" "Where are the answers when I have cancer and I have to decide whether I want surgery or chemotherapy?" "Where are the answers when I am elderly and I am forced into leaving my home and I have to decide whether I will go to a retirement home or move in with my children?" When we need answers, sometimes it seems God is far away. The Psalmist talked about God when it seems God is far away when the Psalmist wrote in Psalms 22:19 "But you, O Lord, be not far off; O my strength, come quickly to help me." Where is the answer when you have to decide whether to put your parent in a nursing home or try to take care of him or her yourself? Where is the answer when you are a single parent and you have to decide whether to put your child in a daycare center or whether to hire a babysitter you barely know? Where is an answer from God and God's guidance for decisions you have to make when all the choices are bad ones? Part of the answer must rest in trust in the Lord and in trusting our ability to be His humble and contrite child. Part of the answer is in our ability to be willing to do only His will and not our own.

Your Great Destroyer

Satan is out to destroy you. Satan does not want to test you to see how strong you are. Satan does not want to test you to make you stronger. Satan wants you dead. Satan wants you dead in the spirit and dead in the body. Yes, suffering and pain are a test, but not a test from God. We can assign many things to God. We can say God is testing us, but when we say God is testing us, we are referring to the testing developing endurance and strength. An athlete works out to strengthen the body by continually exercising muscles by applying resistance or force against those muscles. Muscles in the arms grow stronger by using barbells. Wind sprints build up the muscles in the legs, arms, and lungs by the body's pushing against gravity. God does not concoct some kind of scheme to make you weak and see you fail. What God does do is coach you from the sidelines, so to speak, encouraging you to work hard to win the race. What God most wants from you during your times of suffering and trauma is for you to work against your painful circumstances. God wants you to work against the weakening of your faith. God wants you to work against your obstacles of pain put in your path by Satan. In this way, when Satan tries to destroy you, you can turn Satan's attack against Satan. When Satan attacks you, you must wage a counterattack. When you wage a counterattack against the pain, suffering, and adversity put upon you, you then glorify God by becoming stronger in your faith.

The Story of Kyle

One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."  I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friend’s tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up, and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes.  My heart went out to him. So I jogged over to him, and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before, but we talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung out all weekend, and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are going to really build some serious muscles with this pile of books every day!" He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak. On graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me and all the girls loved him! Boy, sometimes I was jealous. Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech, so I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. "Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat and began. "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach -- but mostly your friends. I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked about how he had cleaned out his locker so his mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. "Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize its depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture, you can change a person's life. - Author Unknown -

Grandfather's Table

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law and four-year-old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered.
The family ate together at the table, but the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. "We must do something about grandfather," said the son. "I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor."
So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner. There Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner. Since grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl. When the family glanced in grandfather's direction, he sometimes had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. The four-year-old watched it all in silence.
One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. He asked the child sweetly, "What are you making?" Just as sweetly the boy responded, "Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Momma to eat your food from when I grow up." The four-year-old smiled and went back to work.
The words so struck the parents that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no words were spoken, both knew what must be done. That evening the husband took grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table.
For the remainder of his days, he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason, neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled.
- Author Unknown -

Reaching Out

Reaching out to others requires we not be too comfortable. Today, too many Christians are too often in a spiritual place of not wanting to grow. Too often, we are content with where we are. We are content to put our own wants and needs before anyone else. Today, in our faith, perhaps we do not have the passion to grow. Unfortunately, today, in the bone and marrow of our service to Christ, we are content. Unfortunately, today, in our faith, perhaps we feel we are big enough and we don't care to be bigger. Unfortunately, today, we are satisfied. We are happy. We are fat. We are lazy. We are rich. Everything is OK. Nothing is really wrong. Unfortunately, today, everything is peachy keen and we have little passion. In the faith, we are too often consumed with ourselves, and with our own little problems. For many of us who are capable of reaching out, reaching out is OK. However, reaching out is just too risky, so we don't reach out. In our faith, we want to be kept. We want to be secure. In our faith, we want to be tended to. We do not want to be uncomfortable, uneasy, or nervous. We do not want to take risks. We are like fish in an aquarium, where all of our needs, wants, and desires are met. Paul Harvey noted, "Too many Christians are no longer fishers of men but keepers of the aquarium."

Picking Splinters

Before you find fault with someone or before you pick a splinter out of their eye, the first prerequisite would have to be there must be an actual splinter in the eye. In your life, there are people who are splinter pickers. These people find splinters in the eyes of others even when these other folks don't know there is a splinter in the eye. Splinter pickers are always looking for the fault, the defect, the mishap, the misstep, the minor mistake, and the slip-up. When something like a mistake occurs, the splinter picker is the first person to charge up and tell the person with the splinter. Then, with a pair of big water pump pliers, the poor person gets his or her eye gouged out in an effort to get at the splinter. Splinter pickers somehow put themselves above others and feel appointed by someone, normally God, to do the gouge work. They are what others call "Holier than thou" since these splinter pickers have appointed themselves, or feel appointed, to be above the rest of us. More often than not, these splinter pickers find splinters that are not really there. Splinter pickers can gouge out the eye, they can split the church, and they can make new Christians fall away. Splinter pickers can destroy the home, make unnecessary waves at the workplace, and cause trouble and dissension when there was no trouble and dissension before the splinter picker goes to work gouging and hurting. Whatever you do, never find fault with anyone, especially a family member.

Our War In Life

Our war in life is not with the burdens we must bear. Our war in life is with the dark powers that want us to believe we cannot live because of the burdens and obstacles we face each day. The inside of your life is God's domain, His territory, and His kingdom if you give the inside of your life over to Him. It is the inside of your life where the mighty victories of your life are won with His help. You can pray for things to change on the outside of your life. However, God's greatest victory through you is when He and you defeat the influences on the inside of your life…the influences that keep you down, defeated, depressed, and hopeless.

Investing In Christ

We are willing to invest our lives in Christ because He defeated death and He came back to life after being dead three days. When we make our investment in Christ our investment means we trust His words, we trust His truth, and we trust Him. Investing in Christ means we have or can have a real, live relationship with Him. When we invest in Christ we have a real, live relationship with Him because He is alive this minute within us. For those of us who have faith, Heaven does not exist on the other side of the universe. For us, because we have made an investment in Christ through faith, Heaven is just an instant away. With our faith investment in Christ, the Holy Spirit, the very essence of Jesus, lives inside of us forever and ever.

Devastation And The Light Of God

No matter how devastating adversity may be, when we truly love the Light of God, the Light of God shines in our darkness. The Light of God can put the desire of our heart in proper perspective. When we can see ourselves and see our world with the Light of God shining within us, we see devastation and darkness in His Light. When we have the Light of God shining within us, we would rather do what the Light desires of us, even in our moments of darkness. The pain of our darkness and devastation, no matter the cause, is fed by the darkness, and when the Light of God is brought into the darkness, the darkness disappears. The darkness does not fill the emptiness in our soul. The darkness only stirs up a pain-filled hunger and thirst in our soul to such an extent we will often do anything to take away the pain. However, the Light of God fills our emptiness and takes away the devastation in our soul with peace and contentment beyond our understanding.