Ready..set..."Rest"

Ready..Set..."Rest"

When were young were taught growing up..about competition and about striving and doing our best...

And we learned about playing sports and games… Were taught that everyone gets ready, everyone gets set to participate...

and everyone exerts their self and tries their hardest to complete the task at hand

In the natural… That seems like it's the correct thing to do on a daily basis...

However...when that doesn't work out

It often leads to frustration...

But in the spiritual realm...in the supernatural it's exactly the opposite...

Because it has nothing to do with and it has never had anything to do with what our capabilities are...

It's only about Gods AMAZING ability to get things done...

Who has never been impatient? I appreciate those hands...the rest of you I'll pray for

Has anyone ever been in a restaurant and thought it took entirely too long

to either have someone wait on you...

or for your food to be prepared

and get to your table?

What about in traffic? I think everyone's patience is about the same when it comes to driving in traffic…

and the older I get the more exceptionally thin it seems everyone else's is as well....

No matter whether it's in the city, or the country, or on the interstate

Impatience...can be and is almost always ugly!

And the sad fact is… Sometimes were the ugly ones

Illus. THE CADDY

Two golfers stepped up to the first tee on the St. Andrews course in New York. The older golfer was a kindly man who played a thoughtful, deliberate game. The younger golfer was full of pride and impatience.

On the first hole he sliced, lost his ball in the tall grass, hit another one, & had a score of 8 instead of 4 or 5. And the next hole was even worse.

Frustrated, he began hollering at the caddy: "Keep your eyes peeled. I'm not here to do your job for you!" Thereafter, every bad shot was the caddy's fault! At the end of the first 9 holes, the younger golfer was so upset that he discharged the caddy & carried his own bag. "That caddy made me nervous. He doesn't like me, & I blankety-blank sure don't like him! I say good riddance to him!"

After several more holes had been played without a word, the older golfer broke the silence: "Several years ago a little kid from Yonkers came up here & became a caddy. He was a sweet-natured boy; quick-witted, willing, & had a nose for golf. Everybody liked him. His name was William; he had a clubfoot. But that didn't affect his caddying. It was a pleasure to go out with him."

"A famous doctor, a member of the club, became interested in William & took him South that winter & operated on his foot. When William returned, he went back to caddying. The doctor, however, had to give up golf shortly after that because of his health. And it wasn't long after that when he died.

"Months later I was playing a round with William carrying my bag. It was Spring, & the fields & hedges were alive with blossoms. William stopped several times to gather flowers until he had quite a bouquet. 'Who's the girl, William?' I asked. 'I haven't any girl, sir,' he said. 'They're for my friend, the doctor--twice a week I take flowers to his grave.'

"Now that's a caddie worth having," the younger golfer said. "What ever happened to him?" The older man paused & then replied, "For 9 holes he was carrying your bag."

From a sermon by Melvin Newland, Thanksgiving and Praise, 11/24/2010)

Have you ever been impatient with God?

Have you ever said or thought these things?

I've prayed and prayed and prayed…

I have asked and asked and asked…

I don't know why in the world this is taking so long....

The word says to ask, so I've asked...

and Lord I know you can do it so why isn't it happening?

Maybe it's not God's will...and if it's not let me know...give me some kind of sign

But Lord if it's your will....will you please answer my prayer

God's will is for you to rest in His ability and not your ability!

Sometimes doing that is hard… Sometimes we like to blame

other people and things, like the golfer in the story did..

We've been taught… Ready, set, go

But with God...it's ready, set, REST

In other words… a need arises, you pray about it

and let God know what the need is and then you REST

in His ability to answer and help you out of your situation

Here are some great words of encouragement from the book of John

John 3:34-35 MSG

“The One that God sent speaks God’s words. And don’t think he rations out the Spirit in bits and pieces. The Father loves the Son extravagantly. He turned everything over to him so he could give it away—a lavish distribution of gifts. That is why whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever!”