complaining

Gaining Contentment

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“If we wished to gain contentment, we might try such rules as these:

1. Allow thyself to complain of nothing, not even of the weather.

2. Never picture thyself to thyself under any circumstances in which thou art not.

3. Never compare thine own lot with that of another.

4. Never allow thyself to dwell on the wish that this or that had been, or were, otherwise than it was, or is. God Almighty loves thee better and more wisely than thou dost thyself.

5. Never dwell on the morrow. Remember that it is God’s, not thine. The heaviest part of sorrow often is to look forward to it. ‘The Lord will provide’ (Edward Bouverie Pusey).

You could almost do away with all of this except for the last four words: the Lord will provide. Everything else is leading to that point and it summarizes the whole thing perfectly in a nutshell. I confess I get a little annoyed with the King James-style wording, but the gist is don’t complain and don’t compare. Don’t spend all your time fantasizing about how you wish your life could be or how it could have been or should have been. Definitely don’t focus on what might happen, which 99 out of 100 times never actually happens.

If you can keep your eyes fixed on Jesus and not on you or your circumstances, you’re a lot better off. Those crashing waves can make us forget that there’s Someone walking out to us on the water, ready to rescue us when we go under. The remedy was in place before we asked for it. Our provision was provided before we had a need. The same God who was with you through a multitude of trials and is with you in your need is also ahead of you in a future that you can’t see yet with His answer that you can’t even fathom or grasp just yet.

Once you let go of your preconceived notions about how life should go and how God should act, there’s peace. Once you stop trying to figure it all out and finally surrender to God and His Kingdom, then there’s perfect peace. The worst that can happen is that you die and go to heaven to be with Jesus. The best that can happen is that Jesus is with you in the midst of whatever good or bad befalls you. Either way, you win because God wins.

I Love the Winter Weather

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winter drunk

In case you haven’t noticed, we’re in the middle of winter.

The only way you could have missed that is if you were living in a cave. A cave with central heating or a large bonfire.

There have been stretches of extremely cold weather in Tennessee. Then there would be stretches of milder, almost spring-like weather. Then back to the arctic weather again.

I believe it’s been cold all over. Not just in Tennessee. Except maybe Hawaii. I’m sure it never gets cold there. But here in Tennessee it has been colder than I can remember it being in a while.

But so far no snow. At least none that stuck around for very long.

I figure that if it gets below 20 degrees, there should be snow. Otherwise, what’s the point? All that numbing cold for nothing?

I am thankful that at least there won’t be as many bugs next summer, thanks to all those deep freeze nights.

I know that we’ll have at least one more solid month of cold, maybe two (if that groundhog sees his shadow).

I’ve learned to enjoy whatever weather I get. If it’s cold, I stay inside and drink warm beverages. If it warms up, I go outside. It’s not complicated. All those people who complain about cold weather are drinking out of glasses half empty. I choose to look at my glass as half full and see the good instead of the bad.

That goes for a lot more than just weather. It goes for employment, relationships, and just about anything in this life.

It really does all depend on how you look at it.

I figure that if God’s in the equation, then there’s no reason to expect things won’t work out for the best. After all, He did make that promise in Romans 8. Something about all things working together for good. Does that ring a bell?

I’d love one good snow this winter, but I won’t hold my breath. For one thing, it’s too cold for that.

 

 

This Is The Voice!

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image

First of all, I bet you just sang those words. Especially if you’ve watched NBC’s The Voice, a reality singing competition. But this blog has nothing to do with that.

Here, The Voice refers to a new translation of the Bible that I’ve chosen for my annual read through the Bible campaign. So far, I’m up to Leviticus. Not bad for me getting a late start this year.

So far, I’m vividly reminded that those pesky Israelites never quite got it right. Even from the start, they were bowing down to idols, sleeping around, and whining like my cat.

Then I’m reminded that I’m a LOT like that. I may not bow down to little wooden statues, but I do have mixed-up priorities where other things and people get put ahead of God. I may not sleep around, but I’ve harbored a few lustful thoughts in my head from time to time.

And I do complain. Maybe not always out loud, but I do get grumpy occasionally and have bad attitudes every now and then (as in every other day).

I’m also reminded that God stuck with His people through all their growing pains and bad choices and outright rebellion. He kept His word, not because they were so faithful but because He was– and still is.

Side note: I’m extremely thankful I’m not bound to offer sacrifices every time I sin. For one, I don’t keep a flock of sheep, goats, and bulls in my backyard. Also, it’s a very messy affair. All that slaughtering and sprinkling blood and burning organs grosses me out a bit.

That reminds me that 1) the cost of my sin is never cheap and 2) the price Jesus paid for my sin was way too high, more than I deserved by a long shot. I should never ever ever take my sin lightly.

I recommend that if you read through the Bible every year that you vary it up and read different translations and different styles of translations. Maybe read a word-for-word version like the NASB one year then read a looser version like the NIV the next. Or possibly even The Message.

More to come on my Bible reading progress. . .

I Have T-Shirts Older Than You

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It’s a humbling thing to realize that you’re old. I came to that realization when I found my old t-shirt from high school in the back of my closet. This t-shirt dates back to 1991, my senior year. It’s old enough to vote. I feel old.

But I’m also thankful. I made it this far. A lot of people didn’t. I can’t complain about my age because some people didn’t get the chance to experience their 40’s. Or even 30’s.

It really is all about perspective. I’m not thinking about how much longer I have left. I’m taking each day as a gift and being thankful that I woke up today with all my hair and most of my senses.

Life is good because God is good and God is life.