"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man
is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. for
momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far
beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at
the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are
temporal, but the things which are not see are eternal"
(2 Cor. 4:16-18).
Hey Gang: What a beautiful day. The sun is out
bright and the ground is covered with a new layer of fuzzy white
stuff. I know I am a little weird but I like snow. It reminds
me that God can make me a new creature in Christ Jesus. Isn't is
neat to know we have a heavenly Daddy who knows every hair on our head (it
takes less time for Him to count mine each day) and every bird that falls from
the sky.
But with the beauty of the day also comes one of those "slight afflictions" that
Paul referred to as "Thorn in the
flesh". As I grow older I am reminded of the many times I had
one of those slight afflictions that we thought would soon heal and be no more,
but each day I reminded of them when the weather is damp and chilly.
One such injury was the result of a grain elevator door coming
unlocked and hitting me on the shoulder; an accident that happened more than fifty
years ago. I finally bit the bullet and went to see a surgeon who
specializes in slight afflictions of the shoulder. After an MRI he
informed me, “Yes, You have a slight tear in a muscle but is it not bad enough
to do anything to fix the problem at this time.” He was not the one who
had to eat, sleep and put up with the nagging soreness and pain.
I really wanted to have a gigantic pity party and do the
"poor me" bit, but I have a series of pictures from children in St
Jude hospital who are fighting for their lives against cancer and I just could
not get too red hot about complaining about a simple muscle tear.
Now, I do believe Paul had good reason to complain about
the 'slight afflictions', he endured in being a bond-servant ambassador of the
Lord. If you feel you have reason to complain this morning turn to 2
Corinthians and read verse 23 through 27.
Pay special attention to verse 28: "If I have to boast, I
will boast of what pertains to my weakness". Paul often referred
to the hardships he endured that built the fiber in his gut to stand on the
Rock no matter what the circumstances.
James tells us to rejoice when you encounter trials, it builds
scar tissue in your soul that prepares you for the tough days ahead. He
also included this piece of truth, "Trials make us perfect and
complete, lacking nothing" (James 1:4).
Sooooo, I think I will take Paul and James up on their counsel
and get myself in gear. There is wood to be hauled, water to be bottled,
errands to be run and as long I sit here in front of this wonderful piece of technology that connects me to you, none of those things will get done. For
those of you who are so much worse off than I, I pray that God will touch your
mortal body and give you freedom from pain, strength for the day and a desire
for more of Him.
Blessings,
Gramps
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