2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (KJV)
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort; who comforted us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
Several years ago, I was involved in a car accident while driving across a bridge.
A left turn lane opened up at the end of the bridge that could safely accommodate three vehicles at the most.
This particular day, several cars decided to turn left and some of those drivers stopped rather abruptly on the bridge.
Suddenly, there was a sea of brake lights in front of me and I had no choice but to hard brake.
I stopped short of making contact with the car in front of me.
The car behind me was not able to do so and rear ended me.
Once traffic began moving again I drove across the bridge and pulled off the road.
The other driver pulled over as well.
I exited my vehicle and was approached by a frightened young lady (a student at the local university) who apologized repeatedly.
I asked her if she was injured and she replied that she was not.
I informed her that I was not injured either.
I reminded her that the most important thing was that neither one of us was hurt.
Next we looked at my vehicle which had some damage to the bumper. "No big deal," I assured her.
Next we looked at the damage to her vehicle and she began to panic.
I explained that her vehicle was equipped with crumple zones designed to absorb impact and that the damage to her car actually protected her.
When she calmed down I asked her to call the police while I checked her vehicle to make sure it was drivable. I checked for fluid leaks and other items as I did not wish for her to have another accident.
As I finished the inspection, she approached me with her phone in hand and asked, "Would you please do me a favor?"
"Of course," I replied.
"Would you talk to my mother?", she asked pleadingly as she handed me her phone.
I took the phone said hello and found myself talking to a rather hysterical mother.
I explained things to her the way I explained them to her daughter.
I finished by telling her that we were both just victims of circumstance and then handed the phone back.
A moment later, we both saw the police car heading our way and she hung up her phone.
She walked over to me and said, "My mother wants to thank you for being so nice to me. I want to thank you, too."
"You're quite welcome," I replied.
I thought about what she said.
I remembered that this young lady had a Heavenly Father as well. Looking back, I am glad I was nice to His daughter as well.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
a.k.a., The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, August 6, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on Friday, August 13, 2010.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
A Look That Said It All
Romans 14:10 (KJV)
But why dost thou judge thy brother? Or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Periodically our church takes its turn staffing the local food bank.
Volunteers are needed to prepare bags of groceries on Friday, others are needed Saturday to assist with distribution.
Due to my work schedule, I volunteer for Saturday when I can.
There are many tasks to be performed but one of the ones I enjoy the most is carrying bags to vehicles for those that require assistance.
I enjoy this task because it allows me to use the time to talk with these individuals.
One particular Saturday, I had already made several trips when a young couple came in with their small children.
Because of their situation, they were entitled to more than one bag.
I politely asked them if they needed any help carrying their bags.
The young lady smiled and said they wouldn't.
That's when it happened.
I turned to the you young man and asked, "Are you sure?"
Suddenly, our eyes met for a brief moment, and he gave me a look that spoke volumes before he averted his gaze.
His look said, "Don't judge me for not being able to provide for my family."
That hit me.
I was not being judgmental. In fact nothing even close to that thought ever entered my mind.
I knew one thing.
This young man was not just being overly sensitive.
I feel certain he had been judged by others in the past… and judged harshly.
Harshly enough to misinterpret even the friendliest of gestures.
I still recall that day and that incident in particular and when I do, it is with a tremendous amount of pity.
My pity is not for the young man, though.
Rather, it is for those that have judged or perhaps misjudged him.
As we are reminded in Matthew 7: 1-2 - Judge not, that ye not be judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, August 6, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on Friday, July 30, 2010.
But why dost thou judge thy brother? Or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Periodically our church takes its turn staffing the local food bank.
Volunteers are needed to prepare bags of groceries on Friday, others are needed Saturday to assist with distribution.
Due to my work schedule, I volunteer for Saturday when I can.
There are many tasks to be performed but one of the ones I enjoy the most is carrying bags to vehicles for those that require assistance.
I enjoy this task because it allows me to use the time to talk with these individuals.
One particular Saturday, I had already made several trips when a young couple came in with their small children.
Because of their situation, they were entitled to more than one bag.
I politely asked them if they needed any help carrying their bags.
The young lady smiled and said they wouldn't.
That's when it happened.
I turned to the you young man and asked, "Are you sure?"
Suddenly, our eyes met for a brief moment, and he gave me a look that spoke volumes before he averted his gaze.
His look said, "Don't judge me for not being able to provide for my family."
That hit me.
I was not being judgmental. In fact nothing even close to that thought ever entered my mind.
I knew one thing.
This young man was not just being overly sensitive.
I feel certain he had been judged by others in the past… and judged harshly.
Harshly enough to misinterpret even the friendliest of gestures.
I still recall that day and that incident in particular and when I do, it is with a tremendous amount of pity.
My pity is not for the young man, though.
Rather, it is for those that have judged or perhaps misjudged him.
As we are reminded in Matthew 7: 1-2 - Judge not, that ye not be judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, August 6, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on Friday, July 30, 2010.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Celebrating Dependence Day
Psalm 5:11 (KJV)
But let all those that put their trust in Thee rejoice; let them ever shout for joy, because Thou defendest them; let them also that love Thy name be joyful in Thee.
In America, we recently celebrated the Fourth of July. That is what it has come to be known. It's official name is Independence Day.
The celebration of independence is by no means strictly an American phenomenon.
Many nations and cultures celebrate their own days of independence.
Independence lends itself quite easily to celebration.
Even as children, we long for the day when we will be old enough to strike out on our own and experience independence.
Life, though, is full of irony, and we soon find out that being independent is not at all what we imagined it would be like. We also discover that with freedom comes the freedom to make mistakes. We then learn that we are the ones to have deal with their consequences.
With independence comes responsibility and we quickly find out that the word "responsibility" has the word "responsible" buried within it.
Yet, in spite of these responsibilities, independence still retains a positive connotation.
In contrast, on the other end of the spectrum from "independence" lies "dependence".
Dependence carries with it a negative connotation.
For example, one can have a chemical dependency.
When it comes to matters of a spiritual nature, dependency is actually a good thing, provided one is totally dependent on God.
The Psalm's provide excellent examples for us.
Psalm 18: 2 - The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Psalm 56:3-4 - What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee, In God I will praise His Word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
The New Testament provides us with good examples as well.
For example, in the ninth chapter of the Book of Luke, Jesus sends his disciples into the world to preach the Kingdom. He gives them power over all demons and the power to cure diseases.
Yet He tells them to take nothing for the journey. According to Luke 9:3 (NET)...
He said to them, "Take nothing for your journey - no staff, no bag, no money, and do not take an extra tunic."
The ability to cure diseases and conquer demons will be the easy part. Jesus Himself grants them these powers.
For their basic daily needs like food and shelter from the night chill they will be totally dependent on God and must have faith that He will provide them.
Having faith in God means depending on Him.
We find that difficult because we have been conditioned by the world to be self reliant and independent.
We can un-learn this conditioning and learn to trust God completely.
Once we do, we can then celebrate our Dependence Day.
Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, July 16, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on Friday, July 23, 2010.
But let all those that put their trust in Thee rejoice; let them ever shout for joy, because Thou defendest them; let them also that love Thy name be joyful in Thee.
In America, we recently celebrated the Fourth of July. That is what it has come to be known. It's official name is Independence Day.
The celebration of independence is by no means strictly an American phenomenon.
Many nations and cultures celebrate their own days of independence.
Independence lends itself quite easily to celebration.
Even as children, we long for the day when we will be old enough to strike out on our own and experience independence.
Life, though, is full of irony, and we soon find out that being independent is not at all what we imagined it would be like. We also discover that with freedom comes the freedom to make mistakes. We then learn that we are the ones to have deal with their consequences.
With independence comes responsibility and we quickly find out that the word "responsibility" has the word "responsible" buried within it.
Yet, in spite of these responsibilities, independence still retains a positive connotation.
In contrast, on the other end of the spectrum from "independence" lies "dependence".
Dependence carries with it a negative connotation.
For example, one can have a chemical dependency.
When it comes to matters of a spiritual nature, dependency is actually a good thing, provided one is totally dependent on God.
The Psalm's provide excellent examples for us.
Psalm 18: 2 - The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Psalm 56:3-4 - What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee, In God I will praise His Word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
The New Testament provides us with good examples as well.
For example, in the ninth chapter of the Book of Luke, Jesus sends his disciples into the world to preach the Kingdom. He gives them power over all demons and the power to cure diseases.
Yet He tells them to take nothing for the journey. According to Luke 9:3 (NET)...
He said to them, "Take nothing for your journey - no staff, no bag, no money, and do not take an extra tunic."
The ability to cure diseases and conquer demons will be the easy part. Jesus Himself grants them these powers.
For their basic daily needs like food and shelter from the night chill they will be totally dependent on God and must have faith that He will provide them.
Having faith in God means depending on Him.
We find that difficult because we have been conditioned by the world to be self reliant and independent.
We can un-learn this conditioning and learn to trust God completely.
Once we do, we can then celebrate our Dependence Day.
Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, July 16, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on Friday, July 23, 2010.
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