Words such as dwell, live or reside highlight what it means to inhabit a geographical location. Yet, you can be present in one place and be void of contentment, enthusiasm and joy. Thus, modern homes often consist of silence, an obvious sign that something is missing or wrong. Perhaps, this empty space needs to be replaced by an inhabitation of praise.
It doesn’t take a doctor to recognize the gleeful from those swamped by the worries of life. Whether you’re dining out at a restaurant, shopping at the mall or walking through a park, those inhabited by anger, bitterness and strife stick out like a sore thumb. The wake left behind by these troubled souls can impact those leaning on the fence, pondering their next move.
The apostle Paul describes an internal battle that persists daily in Galatians 5:16-18. Natural inclinations persuade individuals to gratify their own sinful desires, to indulge in those things that bring pleasure. Unfortunately, these feelings last briefly, before fear, guilt and shame take over. Therefore, to achieve an abundant life, John 10:1o, you must experience a complete transformation, Romans 12:1-2, before an inhabitation of praise becomes a reality.
The pied piper is often a dynamic leader who attracts others to follow his cause and ways. However, without consistency, these individuals can be abandoned, left for someone or something better. If there is no one around to inspire you, people tend to fall back into their complacent habits. Perhaps, this is where you and I fit into God’s puzzle.
The author of Hebrews is a mystery, with a few candidates, but no clear clue to unveil the actual writer. Nonetheless, this book contains essential instructions for church goers sitting in the pew. According to Hebrews 10:23-25, one another are placed into a congregation to call other believers to persevere when the going get’s tough. When a situation appears hopeless, the faithful are encouraged to be a voice of reason, uplifting disappointed souls.
King Solomon thought so highly of this concept, he suggests one another is crucial to overcoming oppression, Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.
1. One worker can motivate the other to reach their goal for the day, setting the tone for others to follow.
2. A friend can help their mate if one falls down or is tired, picking up the other to press on another day.
3. If lost, two people can endure cold temperatures together, surviving until a search and rescue team arrives.
4. Finally, alone one person can be over powered, but two soldiers can band together to defend themselves.
God designed human being to spur one another on toward love and good deeds, Hebrews 10:24. In view of this truth, Christians should be inspired to continue meeting together, holding their peers accountable, verse 25. Without another, all you’re left with is one, separated from the flock with the devil waiting to pounce, 1 Peter 5:8.
In an age of lawlessness, feelings can conceive acts of violence. Whether its road rage, disputes between neighbors or workplace tensions, feelings provide individuals with an excuse for their behavior. Perhaps, this may explain Jesus’ harsh words in Matthew 5:21-26, comparing hatred with murder. Thus, if you sense anger beginning to consume your soul, think twice before giving into these desires.
King David provides a guideline for anyone who reaches a tipping point, as their feelings boil over. Psalm 35:13-14 displays the right way to respond to mistreatment from others. Despite how you really feel, there is a proper way to react to those in need, whether you like them or not. Essentially, David is illustrating a blue print of loving your neighbor as yourself, Matthew 22:39.
A generation ago, most American parents held a common value, relayed to their children weekly, “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it!” Adults in the neighborhood weren’t afraid to discipline other kids on the block, correcting anyone who crossed the line of morality. Today, lawsuits, moral decay and a rejection of God has led many to follow their feelings. Yet, if you want to do what is right, remember the words of Micah 6:8, “act justly, love mercy and humbly walk with God.”
Whether you want to admit it or not, everyone has 3 things in common with Humpty Dumpty. First, at some point in time, you’ll find yourself living on the edge, trying to hang on or stay in control. Second, you will experience a great fall, either physically, spiritually or both. Finally, you’ll discover what it means to be helpless, needing someone else to put you back together.
In Psalm 31:12, King David compares himself to a piece of broken pottery, shattered into pieces. The apostle Paul found himself in a similar predicament, using a jar of clay to illustrate the emotions he endured, 2 Corinthians 4:7-9. C.S. Lewis referred to life as a car in Mere Christianity, trying to run on something other than petroleum, eventually breaking down since individuals didn’t follow the directions left behind by God. Before you get well, you must acknowledge that you can’t do it on your own, in need of a Savior to stitch you back together, John 3:16-17.
Behind childhood fairy tales like Humpty Dumpty lie painful truths. Solomon highlights this in Ecclesiastes 4:10 as friends are designed to pick us up when we fall. Without somebody to turn to, pity reigns on these poor souls. Therefore, if you’re hanging by a thread, lying in pain and waiting to be helped up, cry out to Jesus and He will put you back together, Luke 23:42-43.
Earlier today, I began to feel like Job, pondering when my recent streak of trials will end. While attending a friend’s concert this evening, enjoying the Raymond Lee Band, I sensed an answer coming from the Holy Spirit. If victories out numbered losses, individuals would not learn essential life lessons. Therefore, God allows losses to outweigh victories in life so that humility produces teachable moments.
As I read the book of Psalms, it appears King David does more complaining than celebrating. In the tough times. people are forced into a corner, revealing their true character. Behind the sadness and tears, rough circumstances leads troubled souls to trust in the Lord. Without failure. you don’t truly appreciate the good things in life.
Perhaps, this is the main message of James 1:2-4. After the storms of life fade from the horizon, souls are left to pick up the pieces. Subsequently, wisdom is gained through maturity and perseverance. Winning is nice, but sometimes victory hides flaws and imperfections. Thus, the Lord places losses in life more than victories so that Jesus’ power might be displayed in our weaknesses, 2 Corinthians 12:9.
In the film National Treasure, Nicolas Cage plays Benjamin Gates, a treasure hunter with a tarnished reputation. Despite trying to warn authorities, no one takes his threat serious, that the Declaration of Independence is in danger. In life, there are times when you reach a similar fate, when you’ve done everything you can think of, with nothing else to give.
The apostle Paul refers to these moments in life as periods of humility, 2 Corinthians 12:7-8. When you’re successful most of the time, individuals have a tendency to steal the spotlight from God by saying, “look at me!” Whether you’re watching the Olympics, professional sports and a high school game, the victor receives the spoils. However, behind the cameras, the losers are forced to face the fact they’re got good enough, with nothing left to give except reflecting on what went wrong.
Today, I find myself at the bottom of the barrel, leaning on the words of 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. As much as I want to be magically healed and return to work now, I am stuck with an aging imperfect body which need times to be restored. Thus, I have nothing else to give except time. In my weakness, Christ needs to be strong, to carry me through the frustration of being helpless. When you’ve got nothing left to give, lean on God’s power to lift you up each time you fall!
Depending upon the compound or matter, melting points vary reaching 2500 degrees Fahrenheit for steel, 113 for wax and a mere 32 for ice to begin to melt. However, if you referring to the melting point of individual’s, this fluctuates daily as each day provides various fuels to ignite or cool someone off before tempers flare. Essentially, there is only so much a person can take before they snap, as the emotions inside boil over at, into and toward another soul who just happened to say the wrong thing at the wrong time.
From a spiritual perspective, the melting point can also refer to depression, when someone has suffered so much heart ache that their desire for caring melts away like a candle without any more wax or wick. Thus, a callous heart is formed, afraid to love or let love in, unwilling to be burned again. King David eludes to this in Psalm 22:14, “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax, it has melted away within me.” When you feel that God has forgotten about you or passed you over in favor of someone else, you may reach a similar melting point.
This same factor can also be applied to spiritual fire, mentioned by a teenager pastor in 2 Timothy 1:6, a byproduct of putting into practice the gifts God has given you. Beside anger and depression, applying your talents daily can provide purpose for individuals looking to grasp one of life’s certainties. Despite what goes on around you, when you are in sync with God, the other things that use to bother you seem to fade. Therefore, as long you know your part in the concert of life, Romans 12:6-8, you’ll be able to distinguish what note to play and when to play it according to C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. Until you discover this balance, you just might reach your melting point.
One of the cliches I heard way too often growing up was, “if the shoe fits wear it.” I’m still not exactly sure where this phrase originated or what it’s intended purpose served, yet I have learned to distinguish my strengths from my weaknesses over time. When it comes to death, dying, injuries and wheelchairs, I’m at a loss, leaving me uncomfortable and unqualified to handle these environments.
Perhaps, this may explain why God forced me to visit the other side of the street last week. When you reach a certain age, suffer a debilitating injury or endure an accident, these individuals all share something in common, they are helpless. As you enter this arena, self sufficiency is no longer an option with souls needing another person to help them up, take their hand and nurture them back to health. Normally a quick healer, this is mostly foreign to me except for a few broken bones here and a surgery there.
In biblical times, there were no nursing homes or retirement centers to spend your final years on earth. Your destiny was determined by your family, their generosity and wealth necessary to provide affordable care. As the modern family dissolves into some type of dysfunctional reality television show, its no wonder that the amount of beggars and homeless continue to increase, showing up at most busy intersections where I live. Abandoned by their families, friends and employers, these desperate people are like prodigal sons and daughters waiting for their father to welcome them back home. Until this day, those living on the other side of the street which need prayers, support and a helping hand to get them back on the road to recovery.
Since Thursday afternoon at 5pm, my life has been a whirlwind of emotions. After a successful second interview at Amazon on Wednesday, I sensed a promotion in the near future, trying to stayed reserved until I hear the news. A little more than 24 hours later, my focus switched toward a battle to live, unable to stand or breath on my own. One second I felt like I was having a heart attack, the next a CAT Scan revealed a pocket of blood around my lungs and liver.
For the past 3 days, I have had a tube sucking the blood out of these 2 areas trying to prevent infection. Until this improves, I am in limbo, getting stronger, but still waiting on my internal bleeding to stop. Unfortunately, my body is not healing as quick as it use to in the days of my youth. Thus, life has been put on hold temporarily, in God’s hand and in His time as I wrestle with the Fraility of the human heart.
God has taught me a subtle lesson these past few days, He’s in control no matter what I try to do. Though I usually try to speculate about the future, I am helpless, trusting in God’s grace to get me through this ordeal. Sooner or later, my odds of improvement increase, yet the Lord knows the next steps that I will take. As for now, time is the enemy, placing me behind where I want to be as the reality of life’s fraility has come crashing through the front door of my heart.
As the 2014 Winter Olympics begin Friday, February 7th in Sochi, Russia, I am reminded of the drama previous events have delivered. Whether it’s a human interest story, someone rising to the challenge of stiff competition or the 1980 United States Hockey Team who came out of no where to defeat the U.S.S.R. and earn a gold medal one game later. Thus, as viewers tune in from all over the world to watch next weekend, who will be the next star, who shocks their fellow competitors with one shining moment of gold.
Looking back on my not so allustrious athletic career, most of the sports I played in high school were held off sight in a relatively obscure locations like local golf courses and State Parks. The only sport I participated in with bleachers was swimming, my weakest talent by far. Yes, my 200 Individual Medal Relay did earn a bronze medal at the 1986 State Meet held at the University of Delaware’s pool, but my lack of speed cost us the gold. Yet, in one of my last high school races as a senior, God moved me to swim faster than I ever had before. Despite dabbling in butterfly, back and free style, the 100 yard breast was my strongest stroke and race.
Leading our arch rival Brandywine by a point heading into the final 2 events, I was facing a cross town swimmer who was 1 second faster on average throughout the season. Typically, the number 1 swimmer swam the inside lanes, a little faster than the 2 outside lanes due to the wake splashing back into swimmers. However, just before stepping on the starting block, their top breast stroker switched lanes to shadow me in lane 1. After 25 yards I was slightly behind, pulling even by the halfway mark. Since the bleachers were right on top of lane 1, I began to hear a roar from lane 2 as I approached the final turn. The noise of the crowd, filled me adrenaline, causing me to go faster and faster as I touched the final wall, finish line. As I looked up, the noise was deafening as members of the final relay applauded my victory by 4 seconds, shattering my PR by 3 seconds. In addition, our other swimmer passed both of Brandywine’s breast strokers in the final 5 yards to earn second and mathematically clinch the win.
As great as this experience felt, there is only one other shining moment that compares. While in college I was asked to help out at a lock-in by my high school swim coach who had become a youth pastor. During the festivities, I was drawn to a kid who was called Satan by his peers. Yeah, he had a mean streak inside of him that was pure evil, but the Holy Spirit moved me to minister to him. Layer by layer, like peeling an onion, God began to show me the defense mechanism that he had created to prevent his heart from being broken again. During an altar call late in the night, I led this young man to invite Jesus into his heart, Romans 10:9-10. Able to fulfill the words of James 5:19-20, I sensed another round of applause, this time from heaven. “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety nine righteous persons who do not repent,” Luke 15:7. May you experience multiple spiritual shining moments in not just during the Olympics, but throughout life.
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