Have you ever had one of those days, those weeks, or even those months where you have had the rug pulled out from under you so many times that lying on the floor looking up at the ceiling seems like a natural position. You see, when you have an expectation of how things should flow, and others decide that there needs to be more to it than that, well, things must change. It seems that fully relying on others to help in the successful completion of an activity was rather naive of me. Now, don’t get me wrong, most of the time this is not the case but, let’s be honest, we can default to the negative when it comes right down to it and some things can overshadow the goodness that is around us all the time.
Let me try this illustration as an explanation. I remember a couple years ago I was given some gourmet jelly beans. I was intrigued by all the wonderful colors, but I realized I have come to expect a certain taste to accompany the visual queue. For me, a deep vibrant red and orange jellybean builds up an expectation of a taste explosion of possibly orange and grapefruit but instead it was a hot cinnamon. The next one was a nice bright green which would make you expect a lime but alas it was green apple. Disappoint me once, shame on you, disappoint me twice, shame on me. The jellybeans went into the garbage. My expectation was that the jellybeans would be a wonderful treat, and yet it turned into a negative memory.
There are those out there who will not lift a hand to help others up from the dumps, there are also those who will throw roadblocks to trip you up and will stand by to see just how you handle the trial. I have seen so many people who have such kind and caring hearts, who would drop everything to lift a friend up, get so downtrodden that eventually their “give a care” runs out or is busted. Truth be told, we are all human and are fallible. We will fall short, at some time, and cause others some disappointment but we should always try to err on the side of compassion when we can. I know this can be rather difficult to maintain but think about this;
It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in man Ps 118:8 NLT
“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:16-17 NLT
Whenever things get me sliding into that dark place, when people laugh at my expense, when people make promises then fail to carry it out, I cry out to the Lord and ask for strength, and I will testify to this for the rest of my life, He has NEVER let me down.
This week, Pastor Todd will be on holidays but we have Eryn, our Community Minister blessings us with a message. Please plan to join us either in person or online at 10:30 AM this Sunday. The service will be broadcast online on our website (https://www.mainavefellowship.ca/socialplatforms ), or you are more than welcome to join us in person at 402 Main Ave. W in Sundre, AB.
Blessings,
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