ANGRY SAINTS

When I was working out on a regular basis, I would sit in the free weight area at the Y and listen to the guys who were "get a hernia" serious about lifting. To look at the these guys, you would think they could lift a car. They were huge, powerlifters...not bodybuilders. They were big all over with no sculptured physiques, just big and bulky. They were going for strength & size, not aesthetics.

They would get angry that they were at a plateau with their strength gains. They could be heard saying things like, "I should be better than this" or "I don't know what's wrong with me" or something of that nature. This mind set brings me to the spiritual application.
There are brothers & sisters in the body of Christ who are walking angry. They are angry because they do not measure up to some standard they have in their heads. Unfortunately, the anger they feel towards themselves is more often than not, redirected to others. The frustration that they cannot perform, that they "should be better than this", manifests itself as judging others. They seem to have the unrealized attitude that "If I can't measure up, by George, somebody will, even if it kills me!".

I have been in this place. I have done this with others, I have done this with family members, and for that I am sorry. Don't misunderstand, Jesus does NOT want us to stay where He found us. He does not want us to remain stagnant. We cannot, for it is impossible. The Christian life is not a steady state, no, it is kinetic; ever moving, always changing. If we find ourselves to be the same as we were even a couple of weeks ago, we are not growing, we are dying.

Growth is natural, so if we are not growing, it is un-natural. If you plant a seed, it will grow if it receives nourishment. All that the seed can be is inherent within the seed itself. God can see inside of the seed, the seed being us. He sees the potential. He sees whether we are to be a mighty oak, like Paul or Martin Luther or D.L. Moody. He sees if we are to be a small rose bush that is both beautiful and fragrant, like my mother was or like Mother Teresa. One is no greater or less than the other, because they both have their place in God's economy. We would do well to ask the Lord to give us His worldview, so we will see that all are important and that everyone has a place in the whole, vast configuration of things.

So, consider yourself as God sees you; as the potential oak or rose bush that God has planned for you to be. We are not, at present, what we will be, but we are not as were either...by His Grace.

Think about it.

CHANGING SEATS

Once upon a time, a man got on a bus. It was a big bus with many seats. There were a lot of people on the bus, so many, that the man was a bit intimidated. He didn't know where to sit...and he had carry-on baggage to boot! Wherever he went people would say, "This seat is saved" or "Someone is already sitting here" or even "Go away, I don't want you to sit here".

He finally found a seat next to a man named Bill who was very kind and inviting. He sat down, got as comfortable as he could, and started talking with him. After a few miles he started to get uncomfortable. Bill started insisting that his way of sitting in the seat was the best way and his view out the window was better than everyone else's, even though everyone with a window seat on his side of the bus saw exactly the same scenery.

The man decided to try and find another seat at the next rest stop. When everyone got back on the bus, the only seat left was right behind the Driver. It was a single seat so there was no one to talk to..and the Driver wasn't supposed to talk to the passengers, it was against policy. As the bus started to roll again, the Driver reached under His seat and pulled out a Book and passed it back to the man. When he opened the Book, it started with an introduction of who the Driver was. He was the One to get you to your destination; He was the One in whom you could place all your trust, because He knew the route quite well.

There were some passengers with which the man could converse freely, and they seemed to know the Driver quite well. One woman told him that she only rode on this Driver's bus, that no one else could take her where she wanted to go...because she only wanted to go where the Driver went.

All the people had the same destination, but many would grow weary of the long road and request to be let off. They felt like the Driver was going in circles and the destination was Make Believe. The man, as he got to know the Driver through the Book and conversing with others who knew Him, was quite happy. He knew the Driver had the best Way to go and although not everyone saw what he saw and heard what he heard, they all knew and trusted the Driver...I guess you could say they had Faith in Him.

Think about it.

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

by Donald Miller

After Miller's first 4 books, there was a lull in his writing, in that, he didn't appear to be doing any. Having been deeply moved,

as well as entertained by them, I have been looking forward to this one for sometime. Don did not disappoint.

AMMIATY is a result of that silent period, in fact, it details what was going on during that period of time.

The first third of the book seems a bit slow compared to the rest, but it is the calm before the storm of his life that becomes a

flurry of activity and searching out what it really means to live life as a "story". As with his books, Blue Like Jazz and Searching For God Knows What, the humor and vulnerability come through...which is wonderful, and Don's style has only gotten better. As he told about new friendships

and events in his life, I was drawn into a friendship with this man and truly wanted be a part of what he experienced.

It would not be enough to say I merely enjoyed AMMIATY...I wallowed in it, especially a part that, I believe, was a major turning point, both in the book and in Don's life. I won't tell you what it was, but I will tell you that I wept. The Biblical concepts presented are lightly veiled. You must be

rather sensitive to pick up the nuances, although there are times that Don is very clear, even abrupt. That is why I have come to love this

writer and look forward to more from him. You must read A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, because a great journey is like a great story, and if you combine both, you get a great life.