The Whinery

The devotional I read today struck a chord with me. It reflected some thoughts that had been rattling around in my head over the past days/weeks. The topic of the devotional was about how God uses the pressures of life to improve us, improve our walk with Him, etc. The writer likened it to how grapes under pressure get the juice squeezed out, which can produce fine wine. It immediately hit me that too often I just produce a lot of whine! The writer actually mentions "whine" at the bottom of the article.

My whining is sometimes obvious to others, but usually I keep it to myself, so it outwardly manifests itself in other ways (irritability, impatience, indulgence, discouragement, etc).

This relates somewhat to "pain management" that I wrote about before. For example, over the past months I have had a pain in my hip joints. It comes and goes in intensity, but it is usually there when I get out of a chair, walk, sneeze, etc. For those who don't know me, I move fast. I walk fast, I jump from one thing to another, I get up, move, sit down-all very quickly, so I don't waste time in transit. My new-found pain slows me down a bit. I have a couple choices, other than medication. I can either complain about how unfair it is that someone with so much to do is hampered by pain, or I can be more sympathetic and patient when someone in front of me at the store is moving slowly. Maybe walking is painful for them. I can now relate to that. Now that scenario is less likely to increase my anxiety (I'm in a hurry and I can't get past this guy!) and more likely to prompt me to say a silent prayer for the struggling person, or perhaps give them a hand at getting something off the shelf and into their cart. Don't get me wrong, I'm still struggling with impatience, but the pain in my hip is helping with that!

I have been asking God over the past month or so to reveal to me the source of some of my persisting bad habits. I know that just trying to eliminate bad habits, without eliminating the source, is like cutting the leaves off weeds without pulling them out by the roots. So, I have asked again, and again, for God to show me the root of my bad habits. I think it is the whine.

I guess I need to ask forgiveness for all the whine I have produced, and ask for my eyes to be opened when given an opportunity to produce wine.

The photo was taken from my hotel room in a small town in the south part of Thailand. This is what these two guys did every day, the motorbikes are what they use to commute to their "office." Many, many people live this way. Many more live much worse. Shall I whine when a client provides me with a cobbled-up, noisy, uncomfortable office space, or shall I have sympathy for those who work and live every day in difficult, dirty, noisy, uncomfortable circumstances? Whine or wine. It is up to me as to which is produced.

The Cross

Our family watched "The Passion of the Christ" last night. I thought the kids were old enough to see it. It is brutal to watch, but a very, very important message comes through in that movie-the extent of sacrifice and complete hellish misery that Jesus Christ endured, all because of our sins.
As we came to the scene where the man is told to help carry Jesus's cross, I said out loud "what an honor to be side-by-side, carrying the cross with Jesus." Then I said to myself, "I wish I could have been there, and been the one to help carry the cross." Then just as that thought went through my mind I realized how short-sighted that thought was! Jesus has asked us (and me) to "pick up your cross and follow me." I CAN walk side-by-side with him, and bear the burdens that come with giving up pursuit of my pleasures to fully serve Him. I won't see him, and I won't have a physical wooden cross on my back, but I can have the honor of serving Him using the life, time and resources He has provided me.
After seeing the movie again, I came away with the thought that no matter what I sacrifice over my remaining years to serve Him here on earth, it won't equal even a few minutes of the sacrifice and suffering He did for me.
The photograph is of me and my good friend Pradit. Pradit lives in Thailand, and has graciously invested a substantial sum of money in my next movie. His is an encouragement to me.

Pain Management

I understand time management, money management and similar terms, but "pain management" has perplexed me. I know that many people with medical conditions have doctors talk to them about pain management, and I think that is okay. But, I don't think "management" is the correct term. Things like time and money are limited, and valuable resources. It is responsible to manage time and money, I get that. But "pain management?" I don't want to "manage" pain, I want to elimate or minimize it. Pain is not a resource, is it? Ah Hah! I was recently reading another book by Don Piper, and my perspective shifted. He was crushed and instantly killed when an 18-wheeler ran over his little Ford escort. He was dead for 90 minutes, then came back to life. He really didn't wan't to come back after experiencing Heaven, and he certainly questioned why God brought him back during his months of excruciatly painful, unbearable recovery. Then he figured it out. By experiencing extreme pain, he could now relate to others in extreme pain, who otherwise would probably not give salvation through Jesus Christ a second thought.
So, "pain management" now means to me to take the hardships that come my way, and ask God to use them, and me, to accomplish His purpose. I've had some pain, not so much as others, but I've had my share. It is not right for me to act like it doesn't exist, that is not helpful to anyone. What God wants me to do is "fess up" about the events in my life that hurt, and then use that to connect to others, to honestly "feel their pain" and let them know that they are not alone.
This blog entry may be confusing to you, but it makes sense to me.
The photo is of our dog, Sandy, at the lake today. She helps keep our family stay in focus.