Comfort or Growth

“God cares more about your healing and growth than he does about your comfort." When I first heard it, I cringed. The thought unsettled me. I like to think that God wants me comfortable and happy. Consequently, I started checking the Bible to see if maybe, just maybe, this person was wrong. I thought of the Children of Israel at the Red Sea. He did not give them a get out of trial free card. Nope, they had to go through the sea. He wanted them to trust him and not turn back. I thought of the times in the New Testament when Jesus said things that seemed harsh. It occurred to me that possibly some of what we see as harshness is only Jesus loving the person enough to care more about their spiritual condition than about their comfort. Wow! I think we live in a time where we are so afraid of hurting someone that we fail to say what they need to hear. A few years back, I was pushing 200 pounds. I would get on the scale look at it and then whine about how fat was getting. However, that was as far as it went. Finally, one day my daughter looked at me and said, “Well, what are you going to do about it?” That hurt; it was uncomfortable. It was also just what I needed to get me off my rear and do what I needed to do to lose the extra weight. The most loving thing she did was say what seemed cruel at that moment. How often do we care enough about the people we know to say the hard things that may make us unpopular with them for a time so that they may develop as a Christian? Often, I fear I am guilty of not being bold enough to risk saying the tough things. My goal is to be strong enough that if I know, what I need to say is for their growth and not meant to tear them down; I will speak the words they need to hear. Then I will help them grow and encourage them. God helped the Israelites cross the Red Sea. Jesus also extended help to those who truly wanted his help. I should also add that my daughter became my biggest cheerleader and encourager when I started to lose the weight. Growth is not always comfortable.

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Live Fearlessly

As I was driving home today, I passed a person walking on the side of the road. Since it was cold, and snowy, I thought I should stop and offer the person a ride. As I drove on by, I was irritated with myself for not stopping. I could have and should have but I didn't. Why? I was scared! Maybe that wouldn't bother you, but I'm willing to bet there are things that make you afraid. It may be snakes or spiders that send the ticker into overdrive. Or maybe it's your job and finances that keep you up at night when you should be resting. Then again perhaps it's relationships that consume your thoughts and energy. As followers of God, we know that we are told not to be afraid. Yet we often are afraid despite everything we know. As I was driving away from a missed opportunity, I began thinking about what it is that makes us afraid. I honestly am not sure what it is that causes us to be afraid when we should be bold, but I

Tragedy: A Christian Response

I want to start by telling you a story. We were new parents. When Our oldest, a son, was about eighteen to twenty months we had another baby, a girl with brown hair and huge eyes. One day as I went to feed her, my son who may have been two at the time wandered off to another part of the house. The next thing I heard was a thud. I grabbed my baby girl and ran to see what happened. There was my son with a table on top of him. He had pulled it over on himself and more blood than I had ever seen was running all over. We put him in the car and dashed for the ER. It was not a fun trip. He had a skull fracture and many stitches. Fast forward about fourteen or fifteen years, I’m at a stop light and watch my youngest daughter about ten start across a street on a bike start across a street just as a truck comes around a corner into the path of the bike. She hit the side of the truck and bounced onto the road. I grabbed her up and checked her over there were no injuries, but

Just A Word of Praise!!

On Sunday, after church, we went to a town about thirty minutes away. On the way we drove through an area where they were working on the road. It was no big deal. We had lunch, bought some food for the week, and drove back home. Later, as we were on our way to church for the evening service, I heard the ominous flapping sound that a tire makes when it’s flat. Yikes! I pulled over and while I was debating how I was going to change a tire. A car coming in the opposite direction drove by and stopped. As the driver appeared from the vehicle, I recognized him as a neighbor and fellow believer. He approached the car, and asked if I had an air compressor to inflate the tire. My answer, “Yes, but I’m not sure how good it is. I’ve never actually managed to inflate a tire using it. I may not be using it properly.” I produced it from the trunk of the car and handed it to him. Within a few minutes, he had it hooked up and running. As it turned out, I was using it properly,

Inspirations

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