I often see things in my day to day activities that take me to a place where Ben Stein was in “Ferris Buellers Day Off”.  He was left saying “Bueller, Bueller, Bueller”, I know that anyone about 20 has seen that movie and know exactly what I am talking about.  Well I saw one tonight as I was watching television and I thought just how much it modeled how we as Christians sometimes live our lives.

I was watching the second game of the world series and they went to the aerial shot from the blimp.  Well that in and of itself may not seem weird but they are playing in a dome.  So you watched this blimp fly around this great big building and no one outside could see in and no one inside could see out.  But regardless every once in a while they would jump to shots of the blimp cam.

But in actuality that is not to far from where Christians are today.  We like to know that God is there and every once in a while we will touch base with Him to make sure He is still there watching down on us and basically monitoring us.  But then we go about our business as if He isnt there.  Just like in the dome the people inside were not worried about where the blimp was because they are to caught up in the game.

We need to make sure as Christians that we are following Christ’s example and constantly living and looking for God and for God to move.  Lets remember what Christ said when He was 12 at the temple.

“And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” Luke 2:49

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.  John 4:34

Just remember that we are to be about our father’s business and continue the work of He who sent us.

God Bless~Tyler

At our E3 meeting last night we discussed 2 Corinthians 12:1-10.  This is an awesome section of scripture that gives Christians today an opportunity to stop and reflect on where is their heart and frame of mind.  I am sure that you are familiar with this scripture but let me refresh your memory.  This is where Paul is telling us about the thorn in his flesh.  He tells us how he has prayed three times for the Lord to remove this thorn because of it’s obvious discomfort to Paul.  And we know that it was that because he states in verse 8 that he “pleaded with the Lord to take it away”.  There is not a reason to plead with someone unless your in great discomfort or distress.  So we know that this is something that was affecting Paul daily during his ministry.  But the point of this is not Paul’s pleading but the Lord’s refusal to remove this thorn.  And more importantly the Lord’s response to his pleadings.  But before we discuss that lets discuss this thorn in greater detail.

And when I say the thorn I am not actually referring to the thorn itself and to the debate on whether it was a physical or spiritual ailment.  But rather the “thing” in our life that we constantly struggle with and constantly dealing with.  The thing that has been prayed for and prayed for and for whatever reason God has left it or allowed that particular season to continue.  When this occurs we as Christians must maintain the proper perspective.  This is not a matter persay of the thorn but of the heart.  We must understand that God is using this circumstance or ailment for a possibility of several reasons, 1) He is trying to grow us or teach us some particular lesson that will make us a better tool and in the end glorify Him,  2) He is using the situation to give us an opportunity to share the testimony of our circumstance to ultimately give Him glory.

However, with all of that being said, the real perspective changer was the Lord’s direct response to Paul’s  prayer. In verse 9 the Lord responds with this:

9But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” …

Christ says that His grace is enough.  Through all circumstances the fact that we have grace on our lives is enough for us to rejoice and survive.  Is that where your heart is?  Could you respond like Paul later in that same verse…

“…Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

Are you there yet?

God Bless ~ Tyler