It was the coldest it had been in years. Actually, it was the coldest I ever remember it being. As I got out of the car and walked the few steps across the grass to my gravel sidewalk and into the house, I noticed how hard the ground was. Even the grass was hard and crunchy beneath my steps. The ground under the grass and then the sidewalk were both hard ... solid ...unyielding. That night it seemed to me it was harder even than a concrete sidewalk would be.
I usually don't notice the ground I walk on. Honestly, I don't. It is something that I take for granted like so many other things. I realized there is so much that I don't take the time to think about .. to be thankful for. This ground tonight ... I couldn't ignore it. As I walked into the house I thought how much it would hurt if I fell. I don't think the land ever felt so hard as it did that night.
It was morning the next time I noticed the ground. Two or three days passed and the temperature rose. It wasn't nearly as cold. As so often happens around here, the warmer air brought on rain that continued for a couple of days. The ground, already thawed and loosened, soaked up the showers.
As I stepped off the porch, I was surprised at what I felt. The ground sank beneath my weight, but it didn't feel so much like sinking in to the sloshy earth as it felt like I was walking on a sponge. It seemed to spring back a little as I took each step. I was a very odd sensation; one I don't remember ever feeling before. I felt like I was bouncing as I walked to my car to go work.
Now, I know I can't compete with the Parable of the Sower given to us by our Lord Jesus. He is the Master Teacher and the parable that compares the ground to the hearts of those who hear the Word is a beautiful lesson that cannot be improved upon. That is not my intention here.
Yet I could not help but think about the ground beneath my feet and how it was reacting to the circumstances in which it found itself. It got bitterly cold and the ground became hard and unyielding ... rock solid. I know that as Christians our hearts are not supposed to be cold and unyielding. We are loving people.
But how are we supposed to react when the cold winds of Satan's temptations blow across us. Aren't we supposed to take a hard stand against sin and Satan? Jesus did. Remember how rock solid He was against the devil when He was tempted in the wilderness? Remember how strongly He spoke to Peter when He said, "Get behind me, Satan." We must speak out about the evil in the world. We must make a solid, strong , rock hard stand when the devil comes to tempt us in our wilderness.
When a substance is exposed to cold, the molecules in that substance condense ... get closer together. When God's family goes through tough times... aren't we supposed to pull in to one another ... get closer together... support one another ... help each other stay strong? And the colder it gets ... the stronger our stance needs to be. This old world seems to be getting colder all the time. We need to stand together and stand strong.
OK -- I get that. What about the rains? Well, what about the rains? When we are overcome by sadness or tribulation, what are we supposed to do? When Peter was so ashamed for denying the Lord, what did he do? When John and Peter were thrown into prison for preaching the gospel, what did they do? What about Paul -- or any of the first century Christians who suffered so much persecution? They bounced back!
Peter and John thanked God that they suffered for Christ's sake. Paul continued to preach whenever and wherever he could. James told us to "count it all joy when you fall into divers (manifold) temptations." Yes, be strong against the sin. But be joyful that the Lord loves you! Paul and Silas sang in prison. Nothing could keep these apostles down. They continually bounced back. The world tried to push them down. All kinds of rains fell on them - beatings, imprisonment, false teachers.... and they kept coming back.
Again and again, it seemed the new testament Christians faced obstacle after obstacle. But the church grew by leaps and bounds! These faithful servants of the Lord never lost their hope, or their joy. They held onto the peace that passes all understanding. The Father was with them through it all! God blessed them for their faithfulness.
So I hope the seed of the Word of God has fallen into the good ground of your heart. And I pray that when Satan sends temptation your way you will recognize him for the deceiver that he is. I pray you will stand rock solid against temptation. And when the rains of misfortune fall, please know how much God loves you. It is my wish for you that you are able to bounce back quickly by remembering He has promised to be with you always and forever!
Christ above all things,
Robin
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