Tuesday; February 5


          Have you ever been dealing with an issue and tried to figure out why it happened?  Maybe it was a struggle that seemed to come out of nowhere or a bad choice that you repented of (and made amends for), but the consequences keep having to be paid.  It could have been continuing unemployment (or having to endure a job you just hate).  Maybe it is an illness or the dissolution of a close relationship.  Often we believe that if we could just figure out “why” we feel like we could move on closer to resolution and restoration.  While this may seem to make logical sense, I am convinced that there are some things that happen to us that we’ll never understand.  We may never be able to find a logical connection between an event and our concerns – so what do we do then?
          Not long ago I was reading some thoughts from the Apostle Paul when I came across an observation.  After approaching God three times about a challenge in his life he wrote, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” (I Corinthians 12:9).  While I believe that we can often figure out why we are facing challenges, there may be times we can’t and we are left with accepting God’s grace.  God has His reasons for allowing things to happen, we may have to just come to accept our responsibility of accepting His grace and feeling His presence as we work through it.
          I wish that we could all find ways to overcome whatever burdens us, but when we can’t let’s learn to rely upon the One who has the solution to our problems and the consolation to help us endure it to the end.
Think About It!

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more