Life Changes

The world as we know it is changing dramatically as I write this at 5am Monday morning. We have been told the world changes with each major event in modern times. A thousand years ago, things happened but life went on as if nothing had. Life changed that day.

This all changed that cool November day in 1963 when J. F. Kennedy died. The innocent life we lived changed. People believe life also changed when a beautiful person died needlessly August 31 1997. We had been mesmerized by her and found something we could take hold of and embrace. That was the world’s fairy tale princess. It was almost like having a new person in our family, until that eventful day and we continue to talk about her. Life changed again forever.

It happened again one Tuesday morning, Sept 11 2001. Many of us had settled down into our daily routine, with a frame of mind that told us we were doing okay, but only okay. Life changed with those 4 pilots who crashed and died, killing 2996 and injuring 25000. Our innocence was gone. A world going out of control has shadowed us ever since. But we fought on, well almost. We will ever see the evidence of this act all around us.

Now we have a world changing virus. Yes, we have had them before, ie Spanish flu of 1918. We are told to stay home, close our business and work from home. What the government is telling us are all good measures to heed. In light of what is happening we need to know two things. First of all, most all life changing events are self-created. Secondly God will take care of you. Paul said it best when he wrote in Philippians, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain”. Maybe it’s time to Trust Him to get us out of this. Life is changing.

As the world continues to turn at a speed of 1600 km/hour, we know he is working with men and women worldwide to combat the virus. He is in the minds and hearts of everyone who wish that none should be lost. I believe in Him and we all need to join in prayer asking Him to take care of us now.

Something to think about.

Be Safe.

Rob

Still, Very Still

Please, sit down for a moment and just relax. Yes, you. Motivated people always seem to be ‘on’. It’s like, no matter where they are, who they are with and what is happening all around, they are always on. Just like you, at times. They never seem to relax and just take it ‘in’. They find it difficult to just sit in an easy chair and just, well, just do nothing.

I noticed it a few weeks back. So, I'm thinking of getting some of these chairs at the church just for them. These individuals seemed to always want to be doing something or other.  And even if they find themselves just being, they frantically try to find something to do or be involved in. I guess I’m noticing this more so since I stopped always being ‘on’. Yes, it used to consume me. Even when I wasn’t doing anything my mind was going a hundred miles an hour working out what I thought I needed to be doing and once I got it figured out, off I went and made it happen.

Last week when I was just sitting doing nothing I noticed it was happening again. There I was thinking about the next sermon, service, and article. Even the one that I was about to sit down and think about even before my fingers started dancing on the laptop. It was then that I said to myself, ‘take a step back and take you fingers off the keys’. I did.  

Over the last two months I have been spending more time with more people, just listening. And in doing so, I realized something more important than doing anything. I learned that I don’t necessarily need to have answers more than I need to let people talk and me listen.

We can do this so easily. Try this, Go and visit with someone. Do the normal things, ‘How are you, Everything good’? Then sit back and listen. Don’t interrupt; don’t try to come up with any answers. Just let them talk. A long time ago I heard a very important line. “You can never learn something if your mouth never takes a break”.

When we get to this point of being a good listener we will be doing what God does. I honestly believe God shows up and says to us, “How are you, what’s happening” then He sits there beside us with only a smile of reassurance that tells us He is listening.

We can’t be God but we can engage in listening as He has listened to us. He listens to us when we sit and talk while He listens. And it happened before with Him as we heard Him say; “Be Still and know that I am God”.

Something to think about

Rob