Just take a pill!

Just take a pill!

We love our medicines, don’t we?  We have great faith that there should be some chemical to cure what ails us.  I am thankful for Aleve that keeps me from feeling those aching muscles, for the work of the pharmacy industry in helping us to find ways to manage things like diabetes and high blood pressure, but…  we need to realize that the best health comes from lifestyle, not pills!  That desire for a quick fix creeps into our Christianity, too.  Many of us wish there was a 1 minute prayer that would remove temptation,  an weekend experience at some revival meeting that would solve our family problems forever, don’t we?   

I’ll admit it:  I’d like to preach one sermon that answers all the needs of the people in the pews. It would be great if I could find a series of sermons that would  lead all of the people to a vibrant relationship with the Lord, or if I could find the one system that would assure that the work I do is always effective. You’re smiling, aren’t you? You’re right. There are no one-shot solutions for life’s complex issues!  You know it and so do I.

Here is God's wisdom. We should greet the difficulties of the day with joy because the Spirit uses them to change us into better people, with deeper and stronger faith.  Yes, really! "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the  testing of your faith produces patience." (James 1:2-3, NKJV)  James goes on to laud steady effort, a consistent application of ourselves to resist the natural tendency for all things to slide towards decay! 

Thanks to sin’s entry into Creation, flowers in our garden must be fed and watered. Weeds grow without care.   God says, "Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us." (Hebrews 12:1, NLT) The Spirit’s counsel is not to look for a pill; instead, God tells us to keep on, keeping on: "You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." (Hebrews 10:36, NIV) Perseverance. Endurance. These words mean the ability “to persist in spite of opposing force,” and “to stand up under the pressure of adversity or stress.”

It may seem that success comes to the ‘lucky’ or the talented. The fact is that success, which God defines as “finishing well,” comes to those who courageously stick with responsibility or relationship even when it hard to do so.  It is important to do a heart check in all this. Stubbornness and conviction are next-door neighbors. The former is born of self, the latter of principle. There is a time to listen to wise counsel that points to the necessity of change. Only a stubborn fool takes pride in his unyielding commitment to a lost cause. A wise person holds onto the will of God, following Him into tomorrow, with his hope founded squarely on faith in the Promise of the Kingdom’s fulfillment.
Want to develop maturity of faith? Endure, even in tears!
Need to see that teen-age son through the storms? Persevere, in patience!
Involved in some service or ministry that is stalled? Steady on, one day at a time!
Struggling to conquer a habit that cripples you? Don’t yield ground or compromise!

Take this counsel from the wisdom of the Word. Pray for faith to align your actions with what you claim to believe and wait for the purposes of God to emerge. He is faithful, friend.

"So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way." (James 1:4-7, The Message)

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When the valley is deep
When the mountain is steep
When the body is weary
When we stumble and fall

When the choices are hard
When we're battered and scarred
When we've spent our resources
When we've given our all

In Jesus' name, we press on
In Jesus' name, we press on
Dear Lord, with the prize
Clear before our eyes
We find the strength to press on

Press On
Dan Burgess