Day 224: I Am Not Perfect, But ....
Read: Hebrews 2:5 - 15, Psalm 8
'But one has testified somewhere, saying, “What is man, that You remember him? Or the son of man, that You are concerned about him? (6) You know
something? I have been sitting here at my table staring at this verse,
this passage for about 15 minutes and suddenly it dawned on me ... 'But
one has testified somewhere...' My thoughts and perhaps your thoughts
too always seemed to go back to 'But one'! I do so pray that you will
allow me to roll this around through your minds for a piece. I am
just finding myself fixated on it. 'But one has testified 'somewhere''? It is saying to me that someone dared to stand up to testify to all mankind "Sorry to have to tell you this - You aren't the perfect one!"
For some, this incredibly bold testimony would be quite the stunner. Certainly it would set a few back on their heals to learn that they are not all that they are cracked up to be. They are not the only one's in the universe. Yes, that would certainly be a shocker to the ill prepared. Man is not all that he or she cracks themselves up to be. Someone (namely me) once got up before a group of parishioner's somewhere to
address an issue he felt he was more expert in than the next guy. I
tried to quell the room down by saying "I am not perfect, but ..."
when I suddenly got a rousing chorus of “Yes, we have noticed, O praise
the Lord we have noticed. Now maybe you will have to notice it too. Please Sit down.”
(Trying to instill a bit of face saving humor) "Well, thanks a heap! Do
you not know who I am by now that when I say something self-deprecating,
you are supposed to shower me with compliments and bathe me in praise?!
The only correct reply to the statement, “I’m not perfect” should have
been, “Oh, but you’re awfully close.” When I announced, “I’m not
perfect,” couldn’t you have said, “Well, other than being a little
overweight, I don’t see anything wrong?” (giggling) Well, looking around
the room at the rest of the faces in there, they were not sharing
in my vain attempts at humor. I got the hint - I sat down wondering trying to look my humbled best - how I
was going to take this slice of humble pie.
And this is the
thought I am asking and praying that you will consider this day and even
for this week - "I am NOT perfect, but ..." But that is the common
experience of all people. We all know that we are not perfect. We all
know that we have huge God sized flaws - well, I pray at least some of
us know this. Even the most egotistical of us know that we are never up
to par all the time, able to leap tall buildings with a single bound. We
know that. The issue is what we do with that realization. The issue is
what comes after we acknowledge that we are not perfect. I’m not
perfect, but … what? "I’m not perfect, but …" how would you dare to
confront this sentence, how would you even dare finish that sentence?
Let Us Pray: Lord, as we
finally see it fit to sit ourselves down, as we finally see it fit to
get down on our knees, as we ponder the imponderable - that we (gasp)
(gulp) & (ahem) are not all that we crack ourselves up to be - help
us to clearly see through the Living Words of Psalms 8, just who is the
only One entitled to be the only Perfect One in and for our lives. Help
us to fully acknowledge the significance of these verses:
'What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?
Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
And You crown him with glory and majesty!' (Psalms 8:4 - 5)
Amen.
http://www.youtube.com/
Read: Hebrews 2:5 - 15, Psalm 8
'But one has testified somewhere, saying, “What is man, that You remember him? Or the son of man, that You are concerned about him? (6) You know something? I have been sitting here at my table staring at this verse, this passage for about 15 minutes and suddenly it dawned on me ... 'But one has testified somewhere...' My thoughts and perhaps your thoughts too always seemed to go back to 'But one'! I do so pray that you will allow me to roll this around through your minds for a piece. I am
just finding myself fixated on it. 'But one has testified 'somewhere''? It is saying to me that someone dared to stand up to testify to all mankind "Sorry to have to tell you this - You aren't the perfect one!"
For some, this incredibly bold testimony would be quite the stunner. Certainly it would set a few back on their heals to learn that they are not all that they are cracked up to be. They are not the only one's in the universe. Yes, that would certainly be a shocker to the ill prepared. Man is not all that he or she cracks themselves up to be. Someone (namely me) once got up before a group of parishioner's somewhere to address an issue he felt he was more expert in than the next guy. I tried to quell the room down by saying "I am not perfect, but ..." when I suddenly got a rousing chorus of “Yes, we have noticed, O praise the Lord we have noticed. Now maybe you will have to notice it too. Please Sit down.”
(Trying to instill a bit of face saving humor) "Well, thanks a heap! Do you not know who I am by now that when I say something self-deprecating, you are supposed to shower me with compliments and bathe me in praise?! The only correct reply to the statement, “I’m not perfect” should have been, “Oh, but you’re awfully close.” When I announced, “I’m not perfect,” couldn’t you have said, “Well, other than being a little overweight, I don’t see anything wrong?” (giggling) Well, looking around the room at the rest of the faces in there, they were not sharing in my vain attempts at humor. I got the hint - I sat down wondering trying to look my humbled best - how I was going to take this slice of humble pie.
And this is the thought I am asking and praying that you will consider this day and even for this week - "I am NOT perfect, but ..." But that is the common experience of all people. We all know that we are not perfect. We all know that we have huge God sized flaws - well, I pray at least some of us know this. Even the most egotistical of us know that we are never up to par all the time, able to leap tall buildings with a single bound. We know that. The issue is what we do with that realization. The issue is what comes after we acknowledge that we are not perfect. I’m not perfect, but … what? "I’m not perfect, but …" how would you dare to confront this sentence, how would you even dare finish that sentence?
Let Us Pray: Lord, as we finally see it fit to sit ourselves down, as we finally see it fit to get down on our knees, as we ponder the imponderable - that we (gasp) (gulp) & (ahem) are not all that we crack ourselves up to be - help us to clearly see through the Living Words of Psalms 8, just who is the only One entitled to be the only Perfect One in and for our lives. Help us to fully acknowledge the significance of these verses:
'What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?
Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
And You crown him with glory and majesty!' (Psalms 8:4 - 5)
Amen.
http://www.youtube.com/
Sweetly Broken - Jeremy Riddle
www.youtube.com
Worship
video with lyrics. I produced several videos for use in my small group.
I pray that this video will not only bless you, but bring Glory to the
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