Slippery

Back and Forth/In or Out/Up and Down

“For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken, says the LORD, who has mercy on you.” Isaiah 54:10 NLT

“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” —Jack Welch

Everyone is a leader. The stay-at-home mom, grade school teacher, farmer and rancher, the plumber all lead in some fashion. Even the most humble of careers has moments of leadership. I think about the small business owner, local city council, or local pastor and how they lead during the upsets, uncertainties, and threats.

Life is Slippery. Just when you’ve got all the plates spinning in life—wham–something out of the blue strikes. This may happen because the Father cares about our character. He’s growing us so we can grow others. Sometimes there’s no hidden agenda. Life is sometimes tricky and overwhelming for everyone.

Life is up and down. This is particularly true with relationships. All relationships, even with the Father have down moments. We don’t realize this when we are new in the faith but there are dark times when the Father may seem absent. Someone said, “It’s easier to get into something than to get out.” Jesus warned us that in this life we will have trials. Marriage and family are also perfect examples of ups and downs. The Father’s love remains no matter what.

Back and Forth. This is especially true with finances. We saved for our home, and a down-payment was made.  We joyfully moved in and immediately we were stunned with a notice from our little town council that they were installing a sewer line and were crushing our septic tank after installation of the line. This is a few thousand dollars and an increase in property taxes. That hurt! The money was gone but with hard work and a strict budget, we made it work. Growth.

Excuses are tempting. Sometimes in our Christian journey, we make excuses for our behavior. Examples: “I deserve this ­­­­­(fill in the blank) because (fill in the blank). That’s just the way I am. If you were me, what would you do?” We even say this in prayer because we’re hiding something.

But the scarier thing is when we make excuses for someone who is harming us. Examples: “He hit me because he’s under stress. Anyone would do drugs if they had the family she had.” That’s not Christian love. That’s enabling. It’s a guaranteed, life-long heartbreak. It’s taking the Father’s place Who created all and knows all.

Musings

No other religion, person, or position guarantees love, blessings and mercy except Christianity. We are fortunate because even when we are helpless, the Father’s faithful love remains, endures, and sustains us with blessings.

Prayer

Dear Father,

We are in the holy season of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice of love so that we can have mercy, blessings, and Your permanent love. When we want out, help us stay the course. When we are down, remind us of your mercy. When scrambling back and forth, help us to stop and realize how loved we are.

We are continually thankful.

Amen.