Mental Stressin
"Everyday, it's just anotha struggle,
anotha hustle, anotha day,
Stayin outa trouble, but it seemz like
Ever since birth,
I've been cursed and whuts worse
I'm finally looking at my past,
tha truth hurts..."
-author unknown
A neighborhood child left a scribbled in notebook at our house last summer. I set it on the shelf, meaning to give it back to him next time I saw him. Well, I got to cleaning and going through things today and found it. Looked through it, chuckling over the childish markered letters scrawled across the pages. Then I found a page in the back titled in more mature lettering, "Mental Stressin". The thoughts this unknown author vented caught my attention.
Different handwriting on another page, revealed this message:
"Feeling as tho
I hit Rock Bottom
I don't give a f*** like pac
lit da glock en shot em
problemz ain't nothin new."
-author unknown
We go through our days, most of the time oblivious to the pain of those around us.
But, their pain is real. God, help us feel it and fall to our knees in desperate compassion to see You at work in their lives, not just our own.
Let's not sit in our 'ivory palaces', content with the blessings of God. Let's get out there and do something to show people there is Hope. There is Peace. There is Life. His name is Jesus.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Forgetting Someone Important?
In high school, I had an after-school job. I was thrilled! I had my own money to do my own shopping and Christmas was fast approaching. I bragged to Mom that I wouldn’t need her money because I was going to buy gifts that were actually from ME. It was a big deal—my first year with financial freedom to buy what I wanted for whoever I wanted!
I bought gifts for my family and friends and Christmas Eve I sat down to wrap them. I couldn’t find the gift for my dad! I looked around and suddenly realized I had forgotten to buy him a gift. I checked my purse. All I had left was a dollar in change! Not good.
I panicked. I did the only thing I could. I jumped in my car, headed to Wal-Mart and frantically searched for the perfect gift--that would only cost a dollar. I was getting pretty worried. Finally, I found it—a roll of blue paper shop towels! 88 Cents. Perfect.
My dad was always using mom’s kitchen dish cloths on messy garage jobs. Shop towels would be perfect. I knew it was not something he’d asked for, but I didn’t have a lot of options with only a dollar left.
Now, I have a great dad, and Christmas morning, he really tried to look appreciative, but I knew that he was a little confused and disappointed. I’d bought Mom and my brother nicer gifts and I’d spent money on friends and other family. It was obvious I had forgotten about him.
I tried to explain, but it didn’t matter how many times he reassured me that he liked it, that he knew I loved him, I was ashamed about the gift I had given.
Here was my dad, who had given me everything I had, who loved me, who worked hard to provide for our family, who gave up his hobbies to spend time with me and my brother, and I had forgotten him. When I finally remembered, I only had a dollar left to buy his gift…and I wasn’t old enough for a credit card. =)
I couldn’t help but be ashamed of that gift because I had given left overs, cheaply. I had not planned well, causing me to forget someone very important in my life. Although I’m sure my dad eventually used the shop towels, I found myself noticing them on the shelf in the garage, every time I walked by.
Aren’t you glad that isn’t how God gave and gives to us!? When God gave His own Son, He planned it before the beginning of time. His gift was not a frantic fix-it solution to the problems of the world. 1 Peter 1:20 states that Jesus was “foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” In the book of Acts, when Peter addressed the crowd that had gathered, marveling at the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit, he said Jesus was “delivered [up] by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.”
This was such a well-planned gift that like a loving father would perhaps hint to his children of a super special surprise awaiting them—not wanting them to miss it, but to recognize it—God spoke through the Old Testament prophets giving us hints about this gift. Jesus, the Messiah, fulfilled over three hundred Old Testament prophecies, three hundred hints.
God’s gift was not cheap. It wasn’t His spare change that He gave, but His best. It wasn’t a mere possession He gave, but something—rather, Someone—far more valuable. 1 Peter 1:18-19 states,”… you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold…but with the precious blood of Christ…”
And because God is absolutely Holy, He couldn’t just overlook our sin and let us into His presence, into Heaven. Heaven wouldn’t be heaven if He had. So, the alternative to this gift, is a life of slavery to sin, no hope of freedom from guilt, no strength to overcome temptation, no power over death. And the final result, had God not sent His Son, would be our punishment in Hell.
Now, “how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation…” Heb 2:3 To neglect means “to pay little or no attention to.” It’s very easy to neglect Christ and this gift of salvation at Christmas.
We plan and spend and buy and make and borrow to give gifts to everyone in our lives. But, have you or are you neglecting Christ? Will it get down to Christmas day and you realize, the month of December has been spent and not on Christ. Will you get down to your last minute with family that don’t know Christ and realize you’ve only got one minute left to share Christ with them? What will you give Christ this Christmas?
Will it be well-thought out? Will it be valuable? Will it be sacrificial (like His gift)? Or will it be the leftovers of your time, your money, your energy?
I’m sure there were many days my dad felt more appreciated than that particular Christmas day. What are you doing and what will you do to show your appreciation to our Heavenly Father for His indescribable gift of a Savior...for His gifts of eternal life, freedom from the slavery of sin; and also righteousness, health, peace and joy in our hearts and homes?
What will you give Christ? It’s not like you can wrap up a package of shop towels and hastily put it under the tree for Him on Christmas Eve…but will you spend the whole day running here and there and fall into bed exhausted, with no energy left to listen to Him, to read His letters to You (the Bible), to talk to Him (pray)?
What will you give Christ? Will you purpose to keep your heart pure from the wickedness around you? Will you obey His laws that are given in Love to protect!?
Will you give Him the most valuable gift of all? More valuable than your richest possession is your very life itself. Your soul. Will you give to Him as He has given to you?
Don't neglect this great salvation we've been given! Let’s give Him our souls, our very lives, to do with as He pleases, to follow His commands, to love and honor Him in every aspect of our days.
I bought gifts for my family and friends and Christmas Eve I sat down to wrap them. I couldn’t find the gift for my dad! I looked around and suddenly realized I had forgotten to buy him a gift. I checked my purse. All I had left was a dollar in change! Not good.
I panicked. I did the only thing I could. I jumped in my car, headed to Wal-Mart and frantically searched for the perfect gift--that would only cost a dollar. I was getting pretty worried. Finally, I found it—a roll of blue paper shop towels! 88 Cents. Perfect.
Now, I have a great dad, and Christmas morning, he really tried to look appreciative, but I knew that he was a little confused and disappointed. I’d bought Mom and my brother nicer gifts and I’d spent money on friends and other family. It was obvious I had forgotten about him.
I tried to explain, but it didn’t matter how many times he reassured me that he liked it, that he knew I loved him, I was ashamed about the gift I had given.
Here was my dad, who had given me everything I had, who loved me, who worked hard to provide for our family, who gave up his hobbies to spend time with me and my brother, and I had forgotten him. When I finally remembered, I only had a dollar left to buy his gift…and I wasn’t old enough for a credit card. =)
I couldn’t help but be ashamed of that gift because I had given left overs, cheaply. I had not planned well, causing me to forget someone very important in my life. Although I’m sure my dad eventually used the shop towels, I found myself noticing them on the shelf in the garage, every time I walked by.
Aren’t you glad that isn’t how God gave and gives to us!? When God gave His own Son, He planned it before the beginning of time. His gift was not a frantic fix-it solution to the problems of the world. 1 Peter 1:20 states that Jesus was “foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” In the book of Acts, when Peter addressed the crowd that had gathered, marveling at the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit, he said Jesus was “delivered [up] by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.”
This was such a well-planned gift that like a loving father would perhaps hint to his children of a super special surprise awaiting them—not wanting them to miss it, but to recognize it—God spoke through the Old Testament prophets giving us hints about this gift. Jesus, the Messiah, fulfilled over three hundred Old Testament prophecies, three hundred hints.
God’s gift was not cheap. It wasn’t His spare change that He gave, but His best. It wasn’t a mere possession He gave, but something—rather, Someone—far more valuable. 1 Peter 1:18-19 states,”… you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold…but with the precious blood of Christ…”
The Gift of a Savior wasn’t a life-improvement gift. It wasn’t a like a roll of paper shop towels to simplify cleaning up messes, it was a far more effective gift. Because God knew our deepest need was not just help in life, our deepest need was freedom from sin and death. And so, He gave us another chance to have and enjoy eternal life. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:16-17
Without Christ we were already condemned. We had failed to keep God’s righteous law. He wrote His laws in our hearts, gave us a conscience. Whether we grew up with The Ten Commandments or not, we realized that stealing was wrong when we were stolen from. We learned hatred was bad when we were hated. We discovered idolatry was rotten when a family member spent all their time and money on their addiction instead of their family. And because God is absolutely Holy, He couldn’t just overlook our sin and let us into His presence, into Heaven. Heaven wouldn’t be heaven if He had. So, the alternative to this gift, is a life of slavery to sin, no hope of freedom from guilt, no strength to overcome temptation, no power over death. And the final result, had God not sent His Son, would be our punishment in Hell.
Now, “how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation…” Heb 2:3 To neglect means “to pay little or no attention to.” It’s very easy to neglect Christ and this gift of salvation at Christmas.
We plan and spend and buy and make and borrow to give gifts to everyone in our lives. But, have you or are you neglecting Christ? Will it get down to Christmas day and you realize, the month of December has been spent and not on Christ. Will you get down to your last minute with family that don’t know Christ and realize you’ve only got one minute left to share Christ with them? What will you give Christ this Christmas?
Will it be well-thought out? Will it be valuable? Will it be sacrificial (like His gift)? Or will it be the leftovers of your time, your money, your energy?
I’m sure there were many days my dad felt more appreciated than that particular Christmas day. What are you doing and what will you do to show your appreciation to our Heavenly Father for His indescribable gift of a Savior...for His gifts of eternal life, freedom from the slavery of sin; and also righteousness, health, peace and joy in our hearts and homes?
What will you give Christ? It’s not like you can wrap up a package of shop towels and hastily put it under the tree for Him on Christmas Eve…but will you spend the whole day running here and there and fall into bed exhausted, with no energy left to listen to Him, to read His letters to You (the Bible), to talk to Him (pray)?
What will you give Christ? Will you purpose to keep your heart pure from the wickedness around you? Will you obey His laws that are given in Love to protect!?
Will you give Him the most valuable gift of all? More valuable than your richest possession is your very life itself. Your soul. Will you give to Him as He has given to you?
Don't neglect this great salvation we've been given! Let’s give Him our souls, our very lives, to do with as He pleases, to follow His commands, to love and honor Him in every aspect of our days.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
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