Adversity brings University

Ice skating was something that I learned when I was around 12 years old. It wasn't the easiest quest and after strapping on the skates and wobbling around for a while, I was able to actually glide around. I even, on the same day was able to turn around on my skates and go backwards a bit. I had been a pretty good roller skater, so it didn't take much to get it. One thing to mention in this is that I was on a lake in the mountains of Colorado. If you've ever skated on a frozen lake, its a bit different than a skating rink inside. The water on a lake has little ripples that have frozen and can even have some choppiness to it that can put you on your backside fairly quick.

Do you ever start out your morning with the thought of "I don't want any choppy ice today?" I hope there's no ripples in my plans? Nothing wrong with this thought process, but in reality, we have no idea what our day will fully bring. Just as I started out on the ice, we can set out on the day with our plans, in hand, to start accomplishing them. Things seem pretty easy until....

Then the text comes! the phone rings! the children start coughing, the cable's out...whew! and I could go on with this list. You say this wasn't on my radar and I have things to do today that I don't want interruptions.

When Joseph in the Old Testament woke up one morning, it was just another ordinary day to complete the plans of the day. His father gave him instructions to take go check on his brothers and see how they were getting along. Pretty simple plan and you may have read this account in the Bible, many times, just like I have, but have you put yourself in the story. We look back at these people's lives and know the whole story from beginning to end, but have you considered your own story as you look in?

In a blog I wrote in January, I mentioned that I would share with you the difference between Positive Thinking and Setting your mind on Jesus. They are not the same.

The first one is putting on a happy face no matter what the circumstances are.

The second is a heart attitude of trust in someone greater than yourself, even when things are choppy.

If we think that the Christian life is to always have a smile on your face then what on earth do we do when we read scriptures like these?

This is Jesus' words to Father

John 12:27a

Now is my soul troubled;

This is the Apostle Paul's words

2 Timothy 1:15

15 I’m sure you know by now that everyone in the province of Asia deserted me,

Two of the most incredible men with powerful testimonies, were troubled and had people desert them. You don't hear in either of these accounts, that they were just putting on a smile and continuing on with their plans for the day.

They were both grieved and sorrowful. But what changes everything is that they didn't just pull themselves up by their boot straps, get a new plan and keep trudging on. They both looked to the One, the Father, the Holy Spirit, the Teacher to lead them through where they were at. They didn't go around the "choppy" they had to go through it.

The one thing I didn't mention in the start of this blog, was that I wasn't by myself out there on the lake. I had a teacher that took careful time to instruct me about the lake, like the deeper parts in the middle, the soft edges on the perimeter and Yes! the choppy ice that was created by mostly other skaters around me that had made this choppiness by their skating. As the teaching commenced we held hands and I was led where the safety of the lake was for me. This teacher was my eyes, my ears, my strength, my wisdom as each word came out of their mouth.

You know, I could have learned a few skating techniques and skated away from the safety of the teacher. I had this choice many times, but the teacher’s voice kept calling me to stay close, trust me, let's do this together.

There are many things in this day, that want to intice us to go on our own.

Thoughts like “You don't need anymore lessons from that teacher, just figure it out on your own, you're smart enough and if it feels good to you then just do it”.

Instead, of leaning to our own devices, we get opportunities to trust in One greater than ourselves. Let’s be real, we DON’T want any choppy ice but if we listen to the Teacher, we can learn to navigate through it.

Example:

Here comes the text, the phone call, the crisis......the interuption to my plans.

Before you do anything -

Pray: “Holy Spirit, my Teacher, the One I find my safety in, I give you thanks for this and I know that I can trust you with it, no matter what. Is there anything you want me to know about you in this? and how would you have me to respond (or not respond)?, In Jesus Name, Amen.”

Then wait. Yes, just wait. Don't skate off on the ice ahead. Stay right where you are, do some figure eights while you wait. Practice what you know and then, when the Teacher gives the go ahead, you together make the next glide, together.

One last thought -

Positive thinking isn't going to make Goliath's head fall off. Nope! David had been with the Teacher, who showed him day in and day out, how to face this giant. Earlier that day, it was just another day to David when his dad came to him with instructions for his day. David was to deliver sandwiches to the family. Seriously! just the Door Dash Guy? He had no idea what meal was really going to be served up that day.....

Today's special....head on a platter day! Pretty grusome, but oh so very real.

The next time you wake up with the thought, I really want a good day, just remember, we do have those days, but when we have interuptions, we can either go off on our little plan, or we can stop, pray, put our plan in our pocket and join the Teacher in His plan. You can always pull out the paper in your pocket another day, but be willing to put in right back in the pocket.

I hope this has encouraged you today!

If you want to read these men’s stories in more depth:

Joseph's daily plan went differently than he thought.

Genesis 37

12-13 His brothers had gone off to Shechem where they were pasturing their father’s flocks. Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers are with flocks in Shechem. Come, I want to send you to them.”

Joseph said, “I’m ready.”

14 He said, “Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing and bring me back a report.” He sent him off from the valley of Hebron to Shechem.

15 A man met him as he was wandering through the fields and asked him, “What are you looking for?”

16 “I’m trying to find my brothers. Do you have any idea where they are grazing their flocks?”

17 The man said, “They’ve left here, but I overheard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’” So Joseph took off, tracked his brothers down, and found them in Dothan.

18-20 They spotted him off in the distance. By the time he got to them they had cooked up a plot to kill him. The brothers were saying, “Here comes that dreamer. Let’s kill him and throw him into one of these old cisterns; we can say that a vicious animal ate him up. We’ll see what his dreams amount to.”

21-22 Reuben heard the brothers talking and intervened to save him, “We’re not going to kill him. No murder. Go ahead and throw him in this cistern out here in the wild, but don’t hurt him.” Reuben planned to go back later and get him out and take him back to his father.

23-24 When Joseph reached his brothers, they ripped off the fancy coat he was wearing, grabbed him, and threw him into a cistern. The cistern was dry; there wasn’t any water in it.

25-27 Then they sat down to eat their supper. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites on their way from Gilead, their camels loaded with spices, ointments, and perfumes to sell in Egypt. Judah said, “Brothers, what are we going to get out of killing our brother and concealing the evidence? Let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let’s not kill him—he is, after all, our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed.

28 By that time the Midianite traders were passing by. His brothers pulled Joseph out of the cistern and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites who took Joseph with them down to Egypt.

29-30 Later Reuben came back and went to the cistern—no Joseph! He ripped his clothes in despair. Beside himself, he went to his brothers. “The boy’s gone! What am I going to do!”

31-32 They took Joseph’s coat, butchered a goat, and dipped the coat in the blood. They took the fancy coat back to their father and said, “We found this. Look it over—do you think this is your son’s coat?”

33 He recognized it at once. “My son’s coat—a wild animal has eaten him. Joseph torn limb from limb!”

34-35 Jacob tore his clothes in grief, dressed in rough burlap, and mourned his son a long, long time. His sons and daughters tried to comfort him but he refused their comfort. “I’ll go to the grave mourning my son.” Oh, how his father wept for him.

36 In Egypt the Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, manager of his household affairs.

Just another day for David?

1 Samuel 17

17-19 One day, Jesse told David his son, “Take this sack of cracked wheat and these ten loaves of bread and run them down to your brothers in the camp. And take these ten wedges of cheese to the captain of their division. Check in on your brothers to see whether they are getting along all right, and let me know how they’re doing—Saul and your brothers, and all the Israelites in their war with the Philistines in the Oak Valley.”

50 That’s how David beat the Philistine—with a sling and a stone. He hit him and killed him. No sword for David!

51 Then David ran up to the Philistine and stood over him, pulled the giant’s sword from its sheath, and finished the job by cutting off his head. When the Philistines saw that their great champion was dead, they scattered, running for their lives.