May 6, 2009

Number18

VIEWPOINT

Oswald Chambers commented, “When God gets us alone through suffering, heartbreak, temptation, disappointment, sickness, or by thwarted desires, a broken friendship, or a new friendship — when He gets us absolutely alone, and we are totally speechless, unable to ask even one question, then He begins to teach us.”

The same author also said, “If we are ever going to be made into wine, we will have to be crushed —you cannot drink grapes. Grapes become wine only when they have been squeezed.”

Remember Jesus’ words:  “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.  But if it dies, it produces many seeds.  The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life (John 12:24, 25).  Or to use another quotation:  “Before you can bless, you must bleed; before you can help, you must first hurt.”

The word “broken” is almost always negative.  However, the word, “break” can be positive.  For instance, when something good happens to a person, it is often said to be “his big BREAK.” To be broken in heart or hope could be your big break. 

Are you broken?  It may be that God is going to use you.  God specializes in broken things.  Jeremiah illustrated God’s molding of human beings by a pottery wheel: “I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel.  But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands;  so  the potter  formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him (Jer. 18:, 4).

Dreams and visions shattered, you are all broken inside
You don’t have to stay in the shape that you are in;
The Potter wants to put you back together again
Oh the Potter wants to put you back together again

What a relief to realize that as children of God, we are still in the hands of the Lord.  In his hands we find healing, deliverance and peace.  “He heals the heartbroken and bandages their wounds” (Psalm 147:3). 

-------------------------------------------

Paula sent me the clever message above.  Its truth is a good reminder!  I look forward to seeing you Sunday with a Bible, a smile and a positive word.          RA

Blame Game

John Killinger tells about the manager of a minor league baseball team who was so disgusted with his center fielder's performance that he ordered him to the dugout and assumed the position himself.  The first ball that came into center field took a bad hop and hit the manager in the mouth.  The next one was a high fly ball, which he lost in the glare of the sun – until it bounced off his forehead.  The third was a hard line drive that he charged with outstretched arms; unfortunately, it flew between his hands and smacked his eye.  Furious, he ran back to the dugout, grabbed the center fielder by the uniform, and shouted. “You idiot!  You've got center field so messed up that even I can't do a thing with it!”

All blame is a waste of time.  No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you.  The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for external reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration.  You may succeed in making another feel guilty of something by blaming him, but you won't succeed in changing whatever it is about you that is making you unhappy.