8-11-20   THOUGHTS

One more time I return to Sunday’s lesson.  I promise this is the end.  Again, listening to a reading is different than seeing it with the eye.  Below are two powerfully convicting illustrations.  They seem to demand self examination.

Illustration:   A. W. Tozer said  “In every Christian's heart there is a cross and a throne, and the Christian is on the throne till he puts himself on the cross; if he refuses the cross, he remains on the throne.  Perhaps this is at the bottom of the backsliding and worldliness among gospel believers today.
    We want to be saved, but we insist that Christ do all the dying.  No cross for us, no dethronement, no dying. We remain king within the little kingdom of “Mansoul”  and wear our tinsel crown with all the pride of a Caesar; but we doom ourselves to shadows and weakness and spiritual sterility.
Illustration:   Ronald Meredith, in his book Hurryin' Big For Little Reasons, describes one quiet night in early spring: Suddenly out of the night came the sound of wild geese flying. I ran to the house and breathlessly announced the excitement I felt. What is to compare with wild geese across the moon?
 It might have ended there except for the sight of our tame mallards on the pond. They heard the wild call they had once known. The honking out of the night sent little arrows of prompting deep into their wild yesterdays. Their wings fluttered a feeble response. The urge to fly–  to take their place in the sky for which God made them-- was sounding in their feathered breasts, but they never raised from the water. The matter had been settled long ago. The corn of the barnyard was too tempting! Now their desire to fly only made them uncomfortable. Temptation is always enjoyed at the price of losing the capacity for flight.
“The urge to fly–  
          to take their place in the sky for which God made them--
                         was sounding in their feathered breasts,
                                   But they never raised from the water.”
                 I pray this does not describe me...   Us...?

In my mind, two things that get in the way of our SPIRITUAL MATURITY are:
       1.   OUR SELFISHNESS
       2.   The CORN OF THE BARNYARD
Think on these things!   Turn the spot light on self!  THINK... PRAY!

My Prayer:
Oh God of eternity, help us in self denial.  Teach us to crucify the self that we may be opened to the blessings of love and giving.  May we desire the things of heaven and not the stuff of the earth.  Remove the impure desires and the stumbling blocks that plague our walk.  Fix our eyes on Jesus dear God.  We want to abide in you.
In Jesus name                         Amen.