Update:
I spent Wednesday morning in an Elders’ meeting at Mel’s house. While I was fixing myself lunch at home, my
daughter, Ruth, from Chicago called. We
talked over her lunch break. I took off
my silicone liner, washed it and my leg and then put the shrinker sock on. Answered some emails. My sons, David and Jon, came over and got
some of the ice off of the sidewalk but couldn’t get the driveway ice to bust
yet. They filled the wood rack for me
and then raided the freezer for some pizzas (a small price to pay for the work
they did). After I put my silicone liner
back on, I sat and talked with them while they ate. They hadn’t been gone for 15 minutes when
Karen got home and we made dinner. I
watched “Chicago Fire” and then did my exercises. And that was the sum of my day.
I cannot wait until I can go to the office each day and enjoy simple
pleasures like picking up the mail, go out to the garage, etc. I’ve spent way too much time alone in my
house recently for my own comfort level.
So I enjoyed the interaction time that I had with everyone today; that
made the day go by faster!
On Thursday, I need to make good progress on Sunday’s message and do
some work on a memorial service that will take place on Saturday at my
church. Thursday evening, I will be
speaking to a group of inmates at the Eau Claire County Jail. My goal will be to encourage the men to rise
above adversity, keep a positive mental outlook, and maintain a deep faith and
dependence upon God.
Thought for the Day:
2 Corinthians 1:6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and
salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you
patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.
Did you know that others are watching to see how you will respond to
certain stressors in your life? This is especially true if you call yourself a
Christian. People want to see what you
are made of and how you will respond. If
you are in a position of leadership or in the public eye, there will be people
who will take a cue on how they should respond based upon how you are
responding. In the fire service, newer firefighters
will look to see how their lieutenants are reacting to an incident. People in crisis will often look to see how
their pastor is responding to the situation.
It is as if they instinctively mimic their leader’s faith, confidence or
courage.
A leader can only assist others based upon the experience they
personally have. It doesn’t mean that
they’ve had to undergo the EXACT circumstances before; but they need to have
some seasoning and personal familiarity to what is going on. You would want your fire officers to have some
experience in actually putting out fires or responding to an accident scene
with injuries. Similarly, you would want
your pastor to have experienced some faith-building events in his life, so you
know that it isn’t just a bunch of words.
One of the big events like that in my life was when my youngest
daughter was a toddler and was ill. We
were at the hospital with her and the doctors had just informed us that there
was a very high probability that she would die within the next hour. My wife
and I prayed, releasing her into God’s hands.
It was the hardest thing, I’d ever prayed. Trusting God to both heal her and restore her
to me, OR to take her life so that she could be with Him. I am so glad that God allowed Ruth to
live. She has been a joy and blessing to
my life and many others as well. One of
our nurses was a member of the congregation that I pastored at the time. She mentioned how difficult an experience that
was. I remember responding something
along the lines of “I’ve experienced events like that as a pastor, helping
other families through it; but it is much different when it is your own child.”
I can see that many of the tough times that I’ve gone through in the
past few years have made me a better person and a better pastor. I’ve gained personal insight into what it
means to watch a parent suffer illness and die; to see a loved one lose everything
to Alzheimer’s; to undergo a life-changing illness and operation; to be
housebound and dependent upon other people as an adult; etc. I’ve heard it said that “difficult times will
either make you better or bitter.” I’ve
chosen the route to hopefully allow them to make me better.
As a believer, you might have gone through some similar difficult
times. Those faith-stretching events are
actually beneficial because they can become faith-building events. Like muscles that grow in response to
exercise, so our faith and trust in God grows as we have opportunity to see Him
in action.
I can look back on my life and see a number of events that now act as
sign posts or monuments to God’s faithfulness to me. As I look to the road ahead, I don’t know
what is around the next curve. But as I
check my rear view mirror, I am reminded how God has been with me through all
sorts of events, so no matter what the future brings—I know that it will be
okay because God will be there with me.
Take some time to think about your own life. What events have happened to you where you
know God was present and helped you through them? Look for your own signposts and monuments of
God’s faithfulness. If you don’t see any
in your rearview mirror, then look over at me and take courage and
comfort. “God has obviously made a
difference in Steve’s life; well then, I can believe that God can make a
difference in mine.” By learning to
trust God in times of trouble, you’ll soon have developed your own signposts
and monuments and your faith will grow.
Others will see how God has been active in your life and take hope and
comfort from your story. And so faith
continues to grow and spread…
2 Corinthians 1:6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and
salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you
patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.
Lord, thank you for seeing me through all the events that have occurred
in my life so far. When I encounter
another stressful event, remind me of all the times that You’ve been there for
me before. Give me the faith to trust
You once again for whatever I face.
After it is all behind me, use me to encourage others to place their faith
in you as well and to give them comfort for whatever they face. AMEN.
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