Day 68: Entering The Kingdom Of God: Fixing Your Own Pants!
Read: Mark 10:23 - 27
For all you out there who count yourselves as an artist with needle and
thread, you probably have some sense of what it will take to place an
impossibly thin strand of thread through the eye of a needle. Like my
mother did so many times, you could be sitting in the most comfortable
chair in the house, relaxing to some good music to try to settle you
down. You pick up the offending piece of clothing that ripped somewhere inconvenient. You look at it, see what needs to be done then pick up needle & thread. Mom would look back over her shoulder into my eyes: "This one is going to cost you!"
I cannot tell you how many times I heard my Mom say that to me. I would
watch her as she deftly moistened the thread then picked up the sewing
needle and with almost no effort at all, with her well practiced hands,
the thread was through the eye of that needle. I usually knew that the
cost of that effort was that I had to do the single most impossible
chore there was for me - I had to clean up my bedroom. I had to put all
of my precious stuff where it belonged. Believe me if you knew my
bedroom you too would absolutely cringe at the size of the task. But, I
really needed to have my pants.
Today I am talking about
entering the Kingdom of God. Do we understand what that means, what that
requires of us? Where do we start? It begins with an openness of mind
to something different. It is a mindset that begins with asking first
the simple questions: Mom, will you please repair the hole in these
pants? I just knew that my Mother's love for me would soon find needle
and thread in her hand. Then move to the more daring questions I always
feared to ask: "Would you mind if I watched you to see how you do it?
Usually out of guilt for ripping them for I never really believed she
would ever actually give me the needle and the thread. Then the question
I truly feared finally came: "Why don't you sit down here and just fix
your pants yourself?
It would be easier for a camel to put
itself through the eye of my mothers needle. I did not hesitate to
decline the offer. I would much rather do the impossible and clean up my room that try to repair my own pants. But my Mom thundered in "Then how do you suppose or expect these pants are going to get fixed if you don't
learn to do it?" "It is the right time for you to do it yourself" She
handed me the needle and thread. I sat down in the chair and with much
struggling, repeated failures, repaired them. The hardest part for me
was to put the thread through the needle, but I really did it!
Entering the Kingdom of God can be as easy as learning from Mom how to
fix your own pants then sitting down and actually putting in the effort
to just do it or as hard as just handing Mom the pants, never bothering
to take the time to watch Mom do it. Today, I admit that my sewing
skills would never support my going into business. I regret that for I
haven't forgotten how to rip my pants and I still hesitate to pick up a
needle and thread just leaving it up to my wife. Maybe I should learn
this over again.
Lord Jesus, please teach me how to fix my own
pants that I may one day teach others of entering Your Kingdom on earth
as it most assuredly is in heaven. Amen
http://www.youtube.com/
Read: Mark 10:23 - 27
For all you out there who count yourselves as an artist with needle and thread, you probably have some sense of what it will take to place an impossibly thin strand of thread through the eye of a needle. Like my mother did so many times, you could be sitting in the most comfortable chair in the house, relaxing to some good music to try to settle you down. You pick up the offending piece of clothing that ripped somewhere inconvenient. You look at it, see what needs to be done then pick up needle & thread. Mom would look back over her shoulder into my eyes: "This one is going to cost you!"
I cannot tell you how many times I heard my Mom say that to me. I would watch her as she deftly moistened the thread then picked up the sewing needle and with almost no effort at all, with her well practiced hands, the thread was through the eye of that needle. I usually knew that the cost of that effort was that I had to do the single most impossible chore there was for me - I had to clean up my bedroom. I had to put all of my precious stuff where it belonged. Believe me if you knew my bedroom you too would absolutely cringe at the size of the task. But, I really needed to have my pants.
Today I am talking about entering the Kingdom of God. Do we understand what that means, what that requires of us? Where do we start? It begins with an openness of mind to something different. It is a mindset that begins with asking first the simple questions: Mom, will you please repair the hole in these pants? I just knew that my Mother's love for me would soon find needle and thread in her hand. Then move to the more daring questions I always feared to ask: "Would you mind if I watched you to see how you do it? Usually out of guilt for ripping them for I never really believed she would ever actually give me the needle and the thread. Then the question I truly feared finally came: "Why don't you sit down here and just fix your pants yourself?
It would be easier for a camel to put itself through the eye of my mothers needle. I did not hesitate to decline the offer. I would much rather do the impossible and clean up my room that try to repair my own pants. But my Mom thundered in "Then how do you suppose or expect these pants are going to get fixed if you don't learn to do it?" "It is the right time for you to do it yourself" She handed me the needle and thread. I sat down in the chair and with much struggling, repeated failures, repaired them. The hardest part for me was to put the thread through the needle, but I really did it!
Entering the Kingdom of God can be as easy as learning from Mom how to fix your own pants then sitting down and actually putting in the effort to just do it or as hard as just handing Mom the pants, never bothering to take the time to watch Mom do it. Today, I admit that my sewing skills would never support my going into business. I regret that for I haven't forgotten how to rip my pants and I still hesitate to pick up a needle and thread just leaving it up to my wife. Maybe I should learn this over again.
Lord Jesus, please teach me how to fix my own pants that I may one day teach others of entering Your Kingdom on earth as it most assuredly is in heaven. Amen
http://www.youtube.com/
God is Able - Planetshakers w/lyrics
www.youtube.comGod
is Able by the Planetshakers. This is a powerful and emotional song,
declaring just how able God is. I hope you enjoy the video. :) - Tessa
"Now to Him
No comments:
Post a Comment