Hurts so good

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. ~Hebrews 12:11 (NIV)

How do you feel about the concept of God sending or allowing trials in our life? Do you feel that it is punishment? Do you think God zaps people because He is displeased with them? Are trials just random crud in our life that we're supposed to deal with, irrespective of how it came (or who sent it?) Yeah, I don't know either.

The book of James encourages us to persevere, to endure trials and difficulties with gladness. It doesn't seem real clear just how you do that, but I believe the verse above from Hebrews helps shed light on the matter.

I don't believe the point of the verse above is to merely persevere. Trials have to be properly overcome. Gritting your teeth and slugging your way through a difficulty isn't necessarily overcoming it properly. I believe a trial is properly overcome when the lesson it contains is learned, and the wisdom it can provide is acquired.

Wisdom doesn't necessarily come from experiencing a trial, but from facing it, enduring it, searching for the lesson in it, learning from it, and applying what's been learned. Certainly, I am not trying to remove God from that scenario... but here are two things of which I am sure:

1. Non-Christians who follow these principles have also been known to acquire wisdom, and...
2. Christians who don't, won't.

If you are facing difficulty, ask God if there's a lesson to be learned. I bet He'll tell you.

Love in Christ...
Doug

That's Impossible (or, God, you were just kidding when you said nothing's impossible, right?)

We've all heard it.... "with God, nothing is impossible".

So, my question today is, why don't we believe it?

Oh, we SAY we believe it. We even repeat it to others. But do we LIVE like it's true?

Do we pile up our seemingly impossible hopes on a God who dares us to believe Him? Most of the time when a difficult thing is happening, I guess I'm looking for the lesson in it and counting on Him to help me get through it. Why do we act like we are asking too much of God?

According to John Eldredge in WILD AT HEART, God loves to let the odds get ridiculously lopsided and stacked against Him, then miraculously come through in a pinch.

Why?

Well, why not? He's God, isn't he? Perhaps he knows that any number of other fakes or posers could take the credit if the problem got resolved too soon. How many times do we abandon hope or abandon the prayer before the answer comes? Perhaps it was on the way all along, and we were just too impatient to let it come.

"Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Lord will fight for you - you need only be still." (Exodous 14:13,14)

When is a tragedy not a tragedy?

So get a load of this: In "My Utmost For His Highest" today, the author discusses how, if you want to know the power of God, you must dwell on the "tragedy of God". Elsewhere, he points out that we have not dwelt enough on the "tragedy of Calvary".

Well, being the contrarian that I am, I felt that statement was incorrect, so I looked up the definition of tragedy. Here's what I found (from dictionary.com)

1.
a dramatic composition, often in verse, dealing with a serious or somber theme, typically that of a great person destined through a flaw of character or conflict with some overpowering force, as fate or society, to downfall or destruction.

(well, clearly, that one doesn't apply)

2.
the tragic element of drama, of literature generally, or of life.

(nah, not that one either)

3.
a lamentable, dreadful, or fatal event or affair; calamity; disaster: the tragedy of war.

(nope, don't like that one either)

4.
A disastrous event, especially one involving distressing loss or injury to life: an expedition that ended in tragedy, with all hands lost at sea. A tragic aspect or element.

(sorry, O for 4)

I'm not sure I understand the author's reference to "tragedy". Surely the story is tragic, the necessity of Christ's beatings and torturings is tragic, his final march to the cross while carrying my sins was tragic, but for me, something about the nature of that tragedy changes when I remember Christ's motivation.

In John 10:18, Jesus poignantly explains nobody takes his life, that he lays it down willingly. It isn't some tragic event that happened to Him. It is the very reason He came - to DIE. For me! For you! The gory scene was necessary to portray the ugliness of the sin which he took upon himself. That's not tragic to me, it's heroic !

Don't mourn the tragedy! Praise the Hero! The price of sin is a long, grueling, gory death. And Jesus paid it so we don't have to.

Leftover Pie - I'll take a slice of pumpkin, and throw a piece of humble on the plate, too

Still plenty of leftovers in the fridge, including pumpkin something or other. Gosh it's good. Why do we pick a season to gorge ourselves?
Why is there such a tendency to overdose on things that are detrimental, while avoiding the things that are good for us? It's been going on since we were two years old, when we said "no" to spinach and "more please" to the chocolate cake.

It's still going on, isn't it? e.g.
-"I'll skip the devotions, thanks, but you can pass me some more of that Desperate Housewives please".
- "I don't have time to be kind and gentle, but load another helping of sarcasm and criticism on my plate if you don't mind".
- "I'll have the arrogance special, please. What side dish do I want with that? Let's see, do you have any condescension? I'd like a double helping of that. No? OK, how about some 'look the other way while people in need are reaching out'. Do you have any of that?"

Christ humbled himself all the way to the cross, giving up his God-given rights in favor of making a better life for you and me. If we are "Christians" (meaning that we are followers of Christ), shouldn't we opt to do the same things He did?

And even when we earnestly decide to follow Him, why is it so easy to be full of ourselves? Selfishness has to be the number one problem in the world. What would christianity look like (or the entire world, for that matter) if everyone who proclaims the name of Christ actually gave up their rights and made the effort to live like Him?

What are you thankful for besides turkey?

So you'll have to forgive me for being a little preoccupied with the topic of thankfulness today. Yesterday was Thanksgiving, and today's the day after. I've crammed more calories into my stomach than is advisable. I'm thankful for many things today, and turkey is just one of them.

Jesus said that to whom much is given, much is required. (Luke 12:48) I sometimes wonder if I am appropriately thankful for what I've been given. Being thankful should be considered the bare minimum of our response to Christ's love for us. It shouldn't stop there, but unfortunately, for many, it doesn't even begin there. Someone told me a while back that people who aren't thankful may not be truly or fully aware of just what it is that Jesus did for them.

Where do you stand? Has God nudged you lately? Have you stopped to consider all He has done and continues to do for you? Have you ever had the feeling that He is waiting for your response?

Have a great weekend. All 3 of you reading this!!!