Tuesday; June 30


          2020 could very well go down as the Year of the Virus; yet, it might also be known as the Year of Suffering.  We are reaching the halfway point of the year and to be honest with you, it hasn’t been one of my favorite years.  With illness, economic struggles, civil and political dissensions as well as our own individual issues, I am not looking to repeat the first half of 2020 anytime soon.  The other day I was participating in a discussion about suffering and someone asked the question, “why”.  Why is there suffering?  It would go without saying that we all know that we are going to have struggles and challenges in our lives, but have you ever pondered why this happens?  While I will not dare to speak for God on this topic, I came across a couple of interesting passages that might give us something to consider.  In Psalm 119:71 David noted, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.”.  According to David, maybe suffering is a way that God helps us to focus on the truth of His Word.  Whether it is to get us to change our ways by bringing us back to the Bible or help us grow in spiritual maturity by helping us dig deeper into His message, could suffering be a way to refocus us on His message?
          I don’t know if this is the reason for what we have experienced in 2020 or not, but we need to remember God’s encouragement, “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (II Corinthians 2:16-18).   Let’s hope that the second half of 2020 is better than the first – but even if it isn’t, let’s not lose sight of the eternal blessings God has in store for His faithful disciples.
         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