Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Pushed to the Edge.......

We all go through it from time to time....some suffer from living with an abusive spouse, others are overwhelmed by financial obligations, still others fall to being seduced by a co-worker or supervisor, on and on..... and there are times it only seems to get worse.

 Medical bills for your own children are completely out of control, the horrible acts we often read and hear about:someone is molested by a "perv"or a father raping his own daughter...all kinds of situations in life by things you never wanted or at times even created, contaminated by a "disease" you never expected.

 I know in my own life I have to adhere to choices I make in life...when life seems to be pushing me around...when life is more than I can handle...when life simply wants to get the best of me.
 I like to drink wine occasionally, yet if I get in a "down and out" mood because of life's more bitter moments, I can find myself leaning on wine to use...as a painkiller.
 When this "mood " becomes more prevalent, I find myself wanting to get more "carefree"...when in reality it is "careless". My routine changes...instead of going to prayer or leaning on the Sacred Scriptures for help, I just hope to "ride this thing out", and stay numb during the process. Get up, mow lawn, watch football, and sip wine throughout my day....until I simply fall asleep and let the wine take its course.
 These choices I make can sometimes go on for a few days as I "patiently wait" for my problems...to go away.....

 Some of my friends have discussed how they deal with adverse times in life: Some saying worry and fret take control, others saying they even read a verse of Scripture...yet the fear of the present circumstance is greater than the Scripture verse they have chose to...lean on.  Other friends say they try to stay positive...only to notice the Peace within seems difficult to have its place in their hearts..and others turn to medication...anti-depressants are almost like candy in this day and age.

 In Saint John chapter 8 an interesting situation had developed:

 It was the early morning hours...around dawn, when He arrived at the Temple. A crowd had come and gathered around Him, and He found a place to sit, and began to teach the people...the need for their hearts to trust in His loving Father, the very Father of the Lord Jesus Himself...that being...Almighty God.
 Suddenly, the scribes and pharisees arrived...while Jesus was teaching the crowd, and brought a woman along with them. This woman they had brought with them had been caught...in the very act of adultery.

 Ok, let's take a little closer look at the beginning of this story.

 First, the crowds began coming to hear Jesus...early, at the break of dawn. Why? Jesus had a completely different style of teaching, and His style of teaching offered a hope...a real hope and joy for the common everyday man and woman. The teaching style He used when speaking to the people...came from the love in His heart for anyone who would take the time to listen. He didn't set a format that involved rules and regulations, His teaching did not include any requirements to be of a particular family line or a royal blood line, nor did His style of teaching require anyone to earn their virtues by performing a ritual of self-denial activities. He simply explained to them how much His Father loved them....in the same manner the Father loves Him.
 The Message Jesus shared with the people is much different than the apocalyptic message we read about in the Book of Revelation. In fact His purpose for choosing this style of conveying the Father's love is explained by John in chapter 20, verse 30-31: "Jesus provided for others far more God-revealing signs and miracles than this book is able to contain. The ones I have written and shared in this book which I now pass on to you, is for the purpose you might begin to believe that the Lord Jesus is the True Messiah, the very Son of the Living God...and that you will continue in your faith of believing in Him. For you see, it is in this very act of putting your trust in Him, believing in Him, and relying on Him...you will have discovered the power of true life. This true life in Him is an eternal life, a life full of power, completely fueled by the power...of His Name...just the way He personally revealed Himself...to us."

 Then...there were these guys...known as "Scribes and Pharisees"....they also had a different style of teaching....quite the opposite of the One who is our True Messiah.....

 That will come ...another day. 


No comments:

Post a Comment