With a strong forearm, the apron-clad blacksmith puts his tongs into the fire, grasps the heated metal, and places it on his anvil. His keen eye examines the glowing piece. He sees what the tool is now and imagines what he wants it to be-Sharper, flatter, wider, longer. With a clear picture in his mind, he begins to pound. His left hand still clutching the hot mass with the tongs, while his right hand slams the two-pound pledge upon the moldable metal. On the solid anvil, the smoldering iron is remolded. The smith knows the type of instrument he wants. He knows the size. He knows the shape. He knows the strength.Whang! Whang! The hammer slams. The shop rings with noise, the air fills with smoke, and the softened metal responds. But the response doesn't come easily. It doesn't come without discomfort. To melt down the old and recast it as new is a disrupting process. Yet the metal remains on the anvil, allowing the toolmaker to remove the scars, repair the cracks, refill the voids, and purge the impurities. And with time, a change occurs: what was dull becomes sharpened, what was crooked becomes straight, what was weak becomes strong, and what was useless becomes valuable.. Then the blacksmith stops. He stops his pounding and sets down his hammer. With a strong left arm, he lifts the tongs until the freshly molded metal is at eye level. In the still silence, he examines the smoking tool. The incandescents implements is rotated and examined for any marks of cracks.
There are none.
Now the smith enters the final stage of his task. He plunges the smoldering instrument into a nearby bucket of water. With a hiss and a rush of steam, the metal immediately begins to harden. The heat surrenders to the onslaught of cool water, and the pliable, soft mineral becomes an unbending, useful tool..
"For a little while you may have to suffer grief in all lines of trials. They have come so that your faith-of grater worth that gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is reveled"
(1 peter 1:6-7)
Friday, February 12, 2010
Sudden sin.
" It happens in an instant.
One minute you're walking and whistling, the next you're wide-eyed and falling. Satan yanks back the manhole cover, and an innocent afternoon stroll becomes a horror story. Helplessly you tumble, aware of the fall but unable to gain control. You crash at the bottom and stare blankly into the darkness. You inhale the evil stench and sit in Satan's sewage until he spits you out and you land, dumbfounded and shell-shocked, on the sidewalk.
Such is the pattern of sudden sin.
Can you relate to it?
Very few sins are premeditated and planned. Very few of us can qualify for Satan's strategy team. We spend our time avoiding sin, not planning it. But don't think for a moment that, just because you don't want to fall, you won't. Satan has a special trick for you, and he only pulls it out when you're not looking. Don't expect this demon of demons to challenge you to a duel. No sir. He fights dirty. He is the master of the trapdoor and the author of week moments. He wait until you defense is down and then.... You fall.
You lose your temper. You lust. You take a drag. You buy a drink. You kiss the boy or girl. You follow the crowd. You rationalize. You say yes. You sign your name. You forget who you are. You walk into her room. You look in the window. You break your promise. You buy the magazine. You lie. You covet. You stomp your feet and demand your way. You deny your master.
It's David, disrobing Bathsheba. It's Adam accepting the fruit from Eve. It's Abraham lying about Sarah. It's Peter denying that he ever knew Jesus. It's Noah, drunk and naked in his tent. It's Lot, in bed with his own daughters.
It's your worst nightmare. It's sudden. It's sin.
Satan numbs our awareness and short-circuits our self-control.
We know what we're doing, and yet, can't believe we are doing it.
We want to stop, but haven't the will to do so.
We want to turn around, but our feet won't move.
We want to run, and pitifully, we want to stay.
It's the teenager in the back seat. It's the alcoholic buying "just one". It's the boss touching his secretary's hand. The husband walking into the porn shop. The mother losing her temper. The father beating his child. The gambler losing his money. The Christian losing control. And it's Satan gaining a foothold.
Confusion. Guilt. Rationalization. Despair.
It all hits, and hits hard.
We numbly pick ourselves up and stagger back into the world.
"Oh God. What have I done?"
"Should I tell someone?"
"I'll never do it again."
"My God. Can you forgive me?"
No one who is reading these words is free from the treachery of sudden sin. No one is immune to his trick or perdition. This Demon of hell can scale the highest monastery wall. Penetrate the deepest faith, and desecrate the purest home.
Some of you know exactly what I mean.
You could write these words better than I, couldn't you?
Some of you, like me, have tumbled so often that the stench of Satan's breath is far from a novelty.
You've asked for God's forgiveness so often that you worry that the well of mercy might run dry. Want to sharpen your defense a bit?
--First. Recognize Satan.
our war is not with flesh and blood but with Satan himself.
Do like Jesus did when Satan met him in the wilderness.
Call him by name. Rip off his mask. Denounce his disguise.
He appears in the most innocent of clothing:
a night out with a boy, a good book, a popular movie, a pretty neighbor. But don't let him fool you! When the urge to sin rears its ugly head, look him in the eye and call his bluff. Whatever you do, don't flirt with the fallen angle. He'll thresh you like wheat.
--Second. Accept God's forgiveness.
Romans 7 is the Emancipation Proclamation for those of us who have a tendency to tumble. Look at verse 15:
"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do."
Sound familiar? Read on. Verses 18 and 19:
"For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing."
Man, that fellow has been reading my diary!
"What a wretched man am I! Who will rescue me from this body of death?" (verse 24)
Is there no oasis in this barrenness of guilt?
There is. Read verse 7:25 and 8:1.
"Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!
....Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!"
Amen. There it is. For those in Christ there is no condemnation. Absolutely none.
Claim the promise.
Memorize the words.
Accept the cleansing.
Throw out the guilt.
And Praise your father. "
Some parts are found in the book; Shaped by God; by Max Lucado.
One minute you're walking and whistling, the next you're wide-eyed and falling. Satan yanks back the manhole cover, and an innocent afternoon stroll becomes a horror story. Helplessly you tumble, aware of the fall but unable to gain control. You crash at the bottom and stare blankly into the darkness. You inhale the evil stench and sit in Satan's sewage until he spits you out and you land, dumbfounded and shell-shocked, on the sidewalk.
Such is the pattern of sudden sin.
Can you relate to it?
Very few sins are premeditated and planned. Very few of us can qualify for Satan's strategy team. We spend our time avoiding sin, not planning it. But don't think for a moment that, just because you don't want to fall, you won't. Satan has a special trick for you, and he only pulls it out when you're not looking. Don't expect this demon of demons to challenge you to a duel. No sir. He fights dirty. He is the master of the trapdoor and the author of week moments. He wait until you defense is down and then.... You fall.
You lose your temper. You lust. You take a drag. You buy a drink. You kiss the boy or girl. You follow the crowd. You rationalize. You say yes. You sign your name. You forget who you are. You walk into her room. You look in the window. You break your promise. You buy the magazine. You lie. You covet. You stomp your feet and demand your way. You deny your master.
It's David, disrobing Bathsheba. It's Adam accepting the fruit from Eve. It's Abraham lying about Sarah. It's Peter denying that he ever knew Jesus. It's Noah, drunk and naked in his tent. It's Lot, in bed with his own daughters.
It's your worst nightmare. It's sudden. It's sin.
Satan numbs our awareness and short-circuits our self-control.
We know what we're doing, and yet, can't believe we are doing it.
We want to stop, but haven't the will to do so.
We want to turn around, but our feet won't move.
We want to run, and pitifully, we want to stay.
It's the teenager in the back seat. It's the alcoholic buying "just one". It's the boss touching his secretary's hand. The husband walking into the porn shop. The mother losing her temper. The father beating his child. The gambler losing his money. The Christian losing control. And it's Satan gaining a foothold.
Confusion. Guilt. Rationalization. Despair.
It all hits, and hits hard.
We numbly pick ourselves up and stagger back into the world.
"Oh God. What have I done?"
"Should I tell someone?"
"I'll never do it again."
"My God. Can you forgive me?"
No one who is reading these words is free from the treachery of sudden sin. No one is immune to his trick or perdition. This Demon of hell can scale the highest monastery wall. Penetrate the deepest faith, and desecrate the purest home.
Some of you know exactly what I mean.
You could write these words better than I, couldn't you?
Some of you, like me, have tumbled so often that the stench of Satan's breath is far from a novelty.
You've asked for God's forgiveness so often that you worry that the well of mercy might run dry. Want to sharpen your defense a bit?
--First. Recognize Satan.
our war is not with flesh and blood but with Satan himself.
Do like Jesus did when Satan met him in the wilderness.
Call him by name. Rip off his mask. Denounce his disguise.
He appears in the most innocent of clothing:
a night out with a boy, a good book, a popular movie, a pretty neighbor. But don't let him fool you! When the urge to sin rears its ugly head, look him in the eye and call his bluff. Whatever you do, don't flirt with the fallen angle. He'll thresh you like wheat.
--Second. Accept God's forgiveness.
Romans 7 is the Emancipation Proclamation for those of us who have a tendency to tumble. Look at verse 15:
"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do."
Sound familiar? Read on. Verses 18 and 19:
"For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing."
Man, that fellow has been reading my diary!
"What a wretched man am I! Who will rescue me from this body of death?" (verse 24)
Is there no oasis in this barrenness of guilt?
There is. Read verse 7:25 and 8:1.
"Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!
....Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!"
Amen. There it is. For those in Christ there is no condemnation. Absolutely none.
Claim the promise.
Memorize the words.
Accept the cleansing.
Throw out the guilt.
And Praise your father. "
Some parts are found in the book; Shaped by God; by Max Lucado.
Quotes
Here's some of my favorite quotes. Enjoy!
-- change means purging your heart of anything that can't coexist with christ. you can't put new life into an old lifestyle. the inevitable tragedy occurs. the new life is lost.
-- One thing I know - know in the pit of my stomach, in the center of my bones, know it deep in my empty chest - was that love gave someone the power to break you..
-- When you love the one who is killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If you life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truely loved?
-- God doesn't give you the people you want. He gives you the people you need. To help you. To hurt you. To leave you. To love you. And to make you into the person you were meant to be..
-- As the moon kindles the night: as the wind kindles the fire: as the rain fills every ocean: and the sun the earth: your heart will kindle my heart. Take my heart, take my heart. Kindle it with your heart. 'Cause my heart cannot be kindled without yours. Your heart will kindle my heart.
--Time passes. even when it seems impossible. Even when each tick of the second hand aches like the pulse of blood behind a bruise. It passes evenly, in starnge lurches and dragging lulls, but pass it does..
Even for me.
-- I cannot change yesterday. I can only make the most of today and look with hope towards tomorrow.
--Hope knows that if great trails are avoided, great deeds remain undone. and the possibility of growth into greatness of soul is aborted.
--Love is irrational. the more you loved someone, the less sense anything makes.
--Faith is the courage to accept acceptance.
-- I can see you squirming. You say you aren't worthy of such affection by God? Neither was Judas, but Jesus washed his feet. Neither was Peter, but Jesus fixed him breakfast. Besides, who are you to decide if you are worthy? Our job is simply to be still long enough to let God have us and let him love us. Our job is to listen so we don't miss a moment, or a note of the music God plays for us.
--The biggest stunt the devil can ever pull, is convincing the world he doesn't exist..
--By his fingers, wrinkles of worry are rubbed away. Shadows of shame and doubt become portraits of grace and trust. His touch can turn tears of despair into tears of peace...
--"Just give me a tear-a heart ready to mold. and I'll give you a mission. A mission so bold, that a fire will be stirred where there was only death, and your heart will be flamed by my life and my breath."
--Hell is not a place god sends people. Hell is simply a place where you can go to pay for your sins if you choose it. But there's really no point in paying for something that has already been bought...
-- change means purging your heart of anything that can't coexist with christ. you can't put new life into an old lifestyle. the inevitable tragedy occurs. the new life is lost.
-- One thing I know - know in the pit of my stomach, in the center of my bones, know it deep in my empty chest - was that love gave someone the power to break you..
-- When you love the one who is killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If you life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truely loved?
-- God doesn't give you the people you want. He gives you the people you need. To help you. To hurt you. To leave you. To love you. And to make you into the person you were meant to be..
-- As the moon kindles the night: as the wind kindles the fire: as the rain fills every ocean: and the sun the earth: your heart will kindle my heart. Take my heart, take my heart. Kindle it with your heart. 'Cause my heart cannot be kindled without yours. Your heart will kindle my heart.
--Time passes. even when it seems impossible. Even when each tick of the second hand aches like the pulse of blood behind a bruise. It passes evenly, in starnge lurches and dragging lulls, but pass it does..
Even for me.
-- I cannot change yesterday. I can only make the most of today and look with hope towards tomorrow.
--Hope knows that if great trails are avoided, great deeds remain undone. and the possibility of growth into greatness of soul is aborted.
--Love is irrational. the more you loved someone, the less sense anything makes.
--Faith is the courage to accept acceptance.
-- I can see you squirming. You say you aren't worthy of such affection by God? Neither was Judas, but Jesus washed his feet. Neither was Peter, but Jesus fixed him breakfast. Besides, who are you to decide if you are worthy? Our job is simply to be still long enough to let God have us and let him love us. Our job is to listen so we don't miss a moment, or a note of the music God plays for us.
--The biggest stunt the devil can ever pull, is convincing the world he doesn't exist..
--By his fingers, wrinkles of worry are rubbed away. Shadows of shame and doubt become portraits of grace and trust. His touch can turn tears of despair into tears of peace...
--"Just give me a tear-a heart ready to mold. and I'll give you a mission. A mission so bold, that a fire will be stirred where there was only death, and your heart will be flamed by my life and my breath."
--Hell is not a place god sends people. Hell is simply a place where you can go to pay for your sins if you choose it. But there's really no point in paying for something that has already been bought...
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