How can we explain the world when we don't know much

As I was reading scripture today, I read through this scripture and thought it deserved to be by itself.

Rather than writing around it, I just wanted to share it Romans 11:33-36 (The Message)...

Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It’s way over our heads. We’ll never figure it out.

Is there anyone around who can explain God?
Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?
Anyone who has done him such a huge favor
that God has to ask his advice?
Everything comes from him;
Everything happens through him;
Everything ends up in him.
Always glory! Always praise!
Yes. Yes. Yes.

 

Man, there so much we don't understand and that is why God is so awesome.

 

Have a great day.

If it rains cats and dogs would you get a rabies shot

When it rains it pours.  Sometimes in life we feel we can’t get ahead,  we weathered a storm only to find out were in the eye of the hurricane. Life can get hard, and still get worse after that.

There were some athletes I followed who went through some nasty injuries.  One of which tore his ACL his freshman year in high school.  He fully recovered by the next football season and we ready to go. A week into the season, he tore his other ACL, he was down.  He fully recovered from it and was ready for the next season.  In order to play football, he wore two super knee braces.  While playing running back, he ran through the gap, his knee braces hit each other causing him to fall.  He was tackled without being tackled. He decided to stop playing football after that.

Sometimes in life, we weather a storm and things can get worse as in Paul’s case.  Paul got everyone saved from the storm. Next they were shipwrecked on an island (People from the island came to help them out) he was out helping them collect brushwood for a fire when a venomous snake bit him.  The native islanders thought this dude had ticked off God.  This is the next part of the story in some of Acts 28:4-6…

“The man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live. But Paul shook the snake off in the fire and suffered no ill effects. The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.”

They thought Paul was bad and that is why he deserved to be punished twice.

They stayed away from this man, but it was not was it seemed.  Going off the Princess Bride, “I do not think that situation  means what you think it means.” Paul survived the situation, but how many times do you feel like that?

You make it through a bad situation only to get hit with another one.  A couple of weeks ago I came to an intersection where there was an accident, the lady had kids in her vehicle and was pretty angry/frustrated.  The kids were fine, but she was almost in tears saying, “My dad is going to kill me.” It ends up she just bought this vehicle and on the way home was in a crash with a couple of thousands in damages even though everything was ok.

Bad things can happen in life, but will you let those bad things consume you? Paul survived a nasty shipwreck and then he got bit by a venomous snake (I don’t recommend testing God on this one). He didn’t start saying “Why me God, why me?” He wasn’t depressed from this reason or think things were going to get worse. 

Have faith that life will improve and can improve.  Paul was able to make through some awful situations because of his faith in God and you can too.  Even through the worst of times God can offers us comfort.  Don’t give up on life because it won’t give up on you.  Things can and will get better.

Have a great day.

Eaten by worms and stomach pains

We all get made fun of or stuff said about us.

Some people will say this to our face and some behind our backs.

Some is good, some isn’t.

We have an image we keep and that we believe we are.

Sometimes who we say we are and what we do are two different things.

Sometimes I can be full of myself and we can be full of ourselves.

Herod in Acts 12 was kind of like this.

Listen to what people said after he gave a speech and what happened after words in Acts 12:22-23…

“They shouted, “This is the choice of a god, not of a man.”  Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.”

Weak.

Now the term eaten by worms is not a literal term, worms did not just come out of nowhere and eat him, but it’s a term where he immediately started to have stomach problems and died soon after.

Herod believed in God, because he did not give credit to him an angel struck him down.

We loved to be praised; sometimes the praise we receive isn’t our own doing.

It’s like when we take credit for someone else’s work.

It’s ok to give thanks and accept praise, but at times it’s not our own doing and someone else’s that we are getting praise for.

What do you get and give praise for?

This scripture really hit home with the stomach pains I have been having for the past several years and a really bad past month for me.

God deserves so much blessing.

While I am still sick and will be on some more medicine, one of the health concerns I got diagnosed as having a month ago is now gone.

I still have a bad bacterial infection that reminds me of something that Herod must have caught.

Not that I am overly comparing us, but I know what stomach pains are like.

It makes me thank God for the good he has put in my life and praise him for being over everything.

Even when sick, having God in my life has been such a blessing.

I praise God even through my sickness.

I realize I need to do a better job of giving credit when credit is due.

Today I am going to try to lift people up and give credit where credit is due.

What about you?

Have a great day.

One minute they like you, the next they are gunning for you

The more I look at society, the more I realize we are a “Now” society.

Rather than looking at what was done in the past, it’s what have you done for me lately?

This affects every aspect of life.

We want results and we want them now.

A couple of years ago Larry Brown of the Pistons was the longest tenure coach in the Eastern Conference.

How long was he at Detroit?

Just over two years.

It’s a win or go home business.

Central Michigan last made it to the NCAA tournament in basketball in 03-04.

They have never been a consistent basketball powerhouse.

The year before they made it to the tournament they went 9-20 (or something around there).

After making the tournament, the head coach had opportunities to go elsewhere.

Instead he signed a contract extension with CMU.

After two under .500 seasons or so, he was out.

We want results and we want it now.

This can happen in sports, our place of employment and almost every facet of life.

When we go on a diet, we expect to lose weight quick and fast.

If it doesn’t happen fast enough, we get frustrated.

This happens with money.

We want the same house, neighborhood and vehicles as our parents right now.

It took our parents 30 plus years to end up where they are at now but we want the same results now.

Even when we receive praise, criticism might not be that far away.

Just look at Jesus in John 12:12-13…

“The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.  They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

"Hosanna!
Blessed is he who comes in the name
Of the Lord
Blessed is the King of Israel!”"

Jesus just healed Lazarus from the dead and word spread about him.

He was famous, loved and a large group followed him.

Most of everyone loved Jesus.

They thought the world of him.

He was praised highly.

Yet we see in the up and coming chapters, things changed quickly for the one everyone praised.

One minute people can praise you.

The next minute people can kick you when you’re down.

It happens in life and even happens in the Church.

A while ago, I had a friend who had a great ministry going, there were still things they needed to work on, but it was still going well.

They told the Church they were expecting a kid and everyone was excited for them.

Two weeks later, a leader walked in their office and said by the end of the day you will quit or resign.

Shocked, scared and lost was this person.

If one minute they praise Jesus and the next minute want him dead, the same can happen for us.

Not that our life would be on the line, but our job or our situation might be gone.

If you are going through this right now, I pray that it will be over soon.

Some people don’t realize how damaging what they do can be.

There is still hope for people when bad things happen.

Whatever bad situation you are going through, God can pull you out of it.

It might not happen at the minute we would like, but he will.

Things do get better in life.

Have faith.

One minute people can praise you and the next they could want your head.

Having faith in the worst of times can get you out of the bad situations.

Jesus still loves you!

Have a great day.