Measure of Character

It’s been said before, but it hit me in the face again: “The measure of a man’s character is the importance of the things that upset him.” How that comes back to roost every time my computer, or the internet, or the electricity, or our septic system, or my vehicle, malfunctions.
Having detected God’s hand in my life over the years, saving me from myself and my self-directed plans, I’ve learned pretty well to give the biggies to him. A degree of serenity comes from this kind of acceptance; He always seems to make things come out better that I could have.
My intolerances seem to arise from the little stuff. Crashes can be overcome—with time, effort, know-how, help, and/or money. But work stops, routines get sidetracked, and I get sooooo frustrated. Am I making my computer my idol? Our water supply? My electric blanket? My Tahoe? I think I’m as ticked off at myself about being so involved about as much as I am about the problem itself. I MUST remember that the world will not stop, the sun will not hang in the sky tonight, because of my little problems. I must relearn to establish priorities, to be grateful, to decide on a prudent course of action and follow it, and leave the results to my Power greater than myself—and it works! Every time!

Knowing God's Will

A critically important question arose on Easter as we were serving communion to a shut-in who was entertaining two dark-suited visitors from another church, and whom, since they made no move to leave, we invited to share the Lord’s supper with us. In the ensuing discussion this question arose: How we are to know for sure presicely what God’s will is? Our visitors answered promptly that if you ask him, He’ll tell you, and then you know—without a shadow of a doubt. Intrigued by such certainty, I posed this scenario: Person A, a devout believer whose Lord and Savior is Jesus, KNOWS that a certain course of action is the will of the Lord. Person B, a similarly devout believer whose Lord and Savior is Jesus, KNOWS that a certain course of action is the will of the Lord. The problem is that these two courses of action are diametrically opposed to one another. The question is, who’s right?
I asked this in several ways, and the answer always came back that when you know, you KNOW. They did not entertain the possibility that anyone else could be right, that they could be wrong, or that either a compromise or another approach entirely might be God’s will. They missed the point entirely. They knew that they knew with no possibility of any other opinion. And EACH of them believed that was true for himself alone! And that seriously disturbs me, because that’s the basis of much of the distress in our churches today.