LIFT UP YOUR HEAD

Jeanette Strong writes... When my son was a toddler, washing his hair was always a problem. He would sit in the bathtub while I put shampoo on his hair. Then, when I poured on the water to make a lather, he would tip his head down so that the shampoo ran into his eyes, causing pain and tears. I explained that if he just looked straight up at me, he could avoid getting the shampoo in his face. He would agree; then, as soon as I started to rinse his hair, his fear would overcome his trust, and he would look down again. Naturally the shampoo would run into his face again, and there would be more tears. During one of our sessions, while I was trying to convince him to lift up his head and trust me, I suddenly realized how this situation was like my relationship to God. I know God is my Father, and I'm sure He loves me. I believe that I trust Him, but sometimes, in a difficult situation, I panic and turn my eyes away from Him. This never solves the problem; I just become more afraid, as the "shampoo" blinds me. Even though my son knew I loved him, he had a hard time trusting me in a panicky situation. I knew I could protect him, but convincing him of that wasn't easy, especially when all he could see was water coming down. His lack of trust hurt me, but it hurt him more. He was the one who had to suffer the pain. I'm sure my lack of trust hurts God very much, but how much more does it hurt me? Often in the Bible, we are told to lift up our head to God when problems come. He knows how to protect us if we remember to listen to Him. Now, when I find myself in a situation where it would be easy to panic, I picture my son sitting in the bathtub, looking up at me, learning to trust me. Then I ask God what I should do. Sometimes the answer may seem scary, but, one thing I'm sure of--He'll never pour shampoo in my face!

--James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988), p. 479.

WAIT AND TREAD WATER

A few years ago I almost drowned in a storm at sea in the Gulf of Mexico when I found myself swimming far from shore, having tried to reach my drifting boat. I got into that predicament through my own stupidity, something not unusual at all. I can remember saying, "Well, this is it." The waves were seven or eight feet high, and the sky was dark with gale force winds and lightning. I was drifting out to sea when the Word of the Lord came to me and saved my life. What I thought He said was, "I'm here, Larson, and you're not coming home as soon as you think. Can you tread water?" Somehow that had never occurred to me. Had I continued my frantic effort to swim back to shore, I would have exhausted my strength and gone down. In all sorts of situations we can make matters worse by our frantic efforts to save ourselves when God is trying to tell us, "Stand still." We have gotten ourselves into a hopeless situation and the more we do the worse it gets. Bruce Larson, Wind and Fire

--James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p. 189.

Zingers by Croft - February 26, 2008

The truth of a matter is not determined by how many people believe it.

Never be diverted from the truth by what you would like to believe.

If any man seeks greatness, let him forget greatness and ask for truth and he will find both.

Truth is like a torch--the more it is shaken the more it shines.

If you won't admit you've been wrong, you love yourself more than truth.

-- Croft M. Pentz, The Complete Book of Zingers (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1990).

THE FINISH IS WHAT COUNTS

I taught all my kids to enjoy running. Then they taught me how not to enjoy it. While I could keep a pace ahead of them, it was great. But when they began to haul me out of bed early in the morning on a frosty morning to run, or when my daughter had me running a 10,000-meter race, I started asking, "What in the world am I doing?" I asked the question even more when we got to the start. There were 24,998 others. Being Milwaukee, some of them were dressed as beer bottles. One guy dressed up as a banana, another as a bunch of grapes. The gun went off, and everybody was laughing and waving. The banana was shaking hands with the crowd. And then it got rather interesting after about a quarter of a mile. The banana and the beer bottle were hanging over a garden fence--didn't look good at all. After about a mile there was no chattering or laughing. And after the second mile, the only sound was labored breathing. After the fourth mile, it was so quiet you could hear the birds singing. At 6.2 miles, people were dribbling in one at a time, and not many of them. The moral of the story is this: You get all kinds of people goofing off at the start, but that doesn't count. To finish does, and disciples of Jesus Christ keep on going.
-- Stuart Briscoe, "Ordinary Folks Make Great Disciples," Preaching Today, Tape No. 47.
See: 1 Co 9:24; Gal 6:9; Heb 12:1.

THE PARADOX OF FREEDOM

We have not advanced very far in our spiritual lives if we have not encountered the basic paradox of freedom ... that we are most free when we are bound. But not just any way of being bound will suffice; what matters is the character of our binding. The one who would be an athlete, but who is unwilling to discipline his body by regular exercise and by abstinence, is not free to excel on the field or the track. His failure to train rigorously denies him the freedom to run with the desired speed and endurance. With one concerted voice, the giants of the devotional life apply the same principle to the whole of life: Discipline is the price of freedom.
-- Elton Trueblood in The New Man for Our Time. Leadership, Vol. 10, no. 3.
See: 1 Co 9:25, 1 Ti 4:8, Titus 2:11.

Zingers by Croft - February 22, 2008

Happy is the one who walks so close to God that he leaves no room for the devil.

I will place no value on anything I have or may possess, save in its relation to the kingdom of God.

Some Christians who should be on the front lines are still in basic training.

Thinking well is wise, planning well is wiser, but doing well is wisest.

Christianity is meant to be bread for daily use, not cake for special occasions.