June 18, 2018

Surrender Your Stubbornness

But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.

 – Jeremiah 7:24

It was the story of Molly the Mule. Molly wouldn’t obey anyone until the day she tore her lead loose and ended up tangled in barbed wire. She had to lay there patiently as the wire was cut away from her, the blood was rinsed from her body and all her wounds received ointment. Molly changed when she realized her people were only trying to help her. She gave up her stubbornness and became obedient.

God’s people would eventually learn the same lesson. Again. We’re no different. God asks us to obey and we do until we get overconfident in our own abilities. Then we slowly drift toward doing things our way instead of His. When our lives are in shambles, we turn to God again and repeat the process.

Why are we so stubborn? Why won’t we listen to the One who knows what is best for us, the One who loves us unconditionally? Why must we continually make bad choices that go against His best for our lives?

My youngest dog had a really bad day. He got into trouble again and again. It’s like he couldn’t help himself. Destroying something was awful. Trying to do it again was infuriating. But when he didn’t come when he was called? That’s scary. He doesn’t see the danger. His coming when I call, whether he wants to or not, can determine whether he remains safe or not.

That’s how it is with us. God wants to keep us safe and happy. But we continually make bad choices and refuse to honor Him with our lives. We let things slide. We make excuses. We all do. And we pay consequences we never expected for what seemed like simple choices that wouldn’t make a difference.

Life has a way of snowballing, doesn’t it? One small choice leads to another larger choice. My little fellow wasn’t thinking about getting hurt. He wasn’t thinking about danger. He simply wanted to run and play where he wanted to run and play. I knew that one encounter with a new calf could result in serious injury. Mama cows, especially those with newborns, are extremely protective. He would only want to play with the new calf but mama cow wouldn’t see it that way.

That’s how we are. We only want to play. And have fun. What’s one night out in a bar with our co-workers? What does it matter if I fudge a little on my taxes or text while I’m driving? Surely no one cares if I miss church to go to the beach or a ballgame. Let someone else volunteer, and tithe, and visit the elderly or sick.

Except we aren’t here to serve ourselves. We are here to do God’s will and to serve others so that He might be glorified through us. In turn, we end up happier and more satisfied when we’re focused on God and others instead of ourselves.

It’s hard to relinquish our stubborn need to control. It’s not so easy to step aside and put others before ourselves. And it surely doesn’t feel great when God asks us to do something we really don’t want to do. Do it anyway.

As Molly the Mule learned, true freedom comes when we surrender control and let God lead us.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Reach Out To Others

“I will be merciful only if you stop your wicked thoughts and deeds and are fair to others; and if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; and if you stop your murdering; and if you stop worshiping idols as you now do to your own harm.” -- Jeremiah 7:5-6

How many friends do you have who are of a different race? How many people do you know who are of a different religion? How many people do you see regularly who are in a different economic bracket than you?

Yeah. I know. You’re either defensive or apologetic about now. Maybe both. There’s no need to be. We tend to hang around people who are like us. There’s nothing wrong with that -- until it turns us against certain segments of our population, until we become blind to others, until we use differences to justify our own abominable behavior.

The media has shown repeated stories about a Florida shooting that cost a young black man his life. The police have refused to arrest the neighborhood watch volunteer who fired the fatal shots. It likely will be a long time before we know the full story, if we ever really do. But it sure has ignited yet another debate.

Do we automatically fear someone who is different from us? Had this young man been white, would he still be alive? Had the shooter been black, would he have reacted differently? We don’t know. We only know that differences heighten the emotions of conflict.

How do we change? How do we see others as God sees them? How do we look beyond the differences while not being sucked into places we really shouldn’t be? There is a line. We know that. But how do we find it?

Prayer. And by loving people where they are. A woman recently talked about how her elderly mother has befriended her gay neighbors. Her mother doesn’t approve of homosexuality but she has decided to love them anyway. Her attitude is slowly changing one of the men from anti-Christian to someone with a more open mind. Love is that way. It brings out the best in all of us.

Every day each of us is faced with potential conflict. We can look the other way. We can be kind even when we disagree. We can show people Jesus in the midst of our differences.

So reach out before you reject. Take a step back before you attack. Try kindness instead of rejection. The results might amaze you.