2019-08-20
John 16:33 NKJV
Sixth, you must try to keep your problems in perspective. You’ve probably heard the saying: “I grumbled because I had no shoes, then I met a man who had no feet.” In a Peanuts cartoon, Snoopy looks in and sees the family sitting around the table enjoying Thanksgiving dinner while he’s outside eating dog food. “How about that?” he thinks. “Everybody’s eating turkey today, but because I’m just a dog I get dog food.” Then he suddenly regains his perspective. “Of course, things could be worse – I could have been born a turkey!” How big or how difficult our problem appears to be is often a matter of perspective. Most difficulties we face are pretty insignificant in the larger scheme of things. When a friend gets cancer or loses a loved one, we’re reminded of just how petty our issues are. Author James Agee recalled how he once struck up a conversation with an impoverished elderly woman in the heart of Appalachia during the Great Depression. She lived in a tiny shack with dirt floors, no heat, and no indoor plumbing. “What would you do,” he asked, “if someone gave you some money to help you out?” The woman thought for a moment and answered, “I guess I’d give it to the poor.” Realizing there are people around you who have much bigger problems than yours brings gratitude and perspective. Jesus told His disciples, “These things have I spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Soul food: Lam 1:1-3:39; Matt 19:15-30; Ps 119:121-128; Prov 18:13-20
2019-08-19
Proverbs 16:9 NKJV
Fifth, don’t just see the problem, look for the opportunity. When President John Kennedy was asked how he became a war hero, he smiled and quipped, “It was easy. Somebody sunk my boat!” While it’s true that certain individuals have a vision and pursue it, many times adversity paves the way to success. This was the case for a man whose small business was failing: “I was paying a sheriff five dollars a day to postpone a judgment on my small factory. Then came the gas man, and because I couldn’t pay his bill he promptly cut off my gas. I was in the midst of certain very important experiments, and to have the gas people plunge me into darkness made me so mad I at once began to read up on gas technique and economics, and resolved I would try to see if electricity couldn’t be made to replace gas and give those gas people a run for their money.” That man was Thomas Edison, founder of General Electric. Problems are wake-up calls for creativity. If you choose to wake up, and get up, problems will prompt you to use your God-given abilities, rally your resources, and move forward. The truth is, without certain problems we would end up in the wrong place, with the wrong people, doing the wrong thing. “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Out of pain comes purpose, and out of devastation comes direction. So talk to God about your problem; let Him show you the potential it holds and what He has in mind for you.
Soul food: Gal 4-6; Matt 19:1-14; Ps 119:113-120; Prov 18:10-12
2019-08-18
Proverbs 14:15 NIV
Fourth, evaluate the problem carefully and prayerfully. Here’s what King Solomon said about reacting impulsively instead of taking time to get all the facts. “The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.” “To answer before listening – that is folly and shame” (Proverbs 18:13 NIV). When patients are in pain they want quick relief. But the doctor knows that the pain must be diagnosed correctly in order to prescribe the right medication and make the patient whole. For you that means asking yourself, “Who or what caused this problem? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill? Has it the potential to do real damage, or will I have forgotten about it this time next week?” If you don’t diagnose the problem correctly you’ll have to go back and start over again, at which point the solution will probably be more painful and costly. Mike Leavitt, former United States Secretary of Health and Human Services, said, “There is a time in the life of every problem when it is big enough to see, yet small enough to solve.” The key is to find the right time and be patient when implementing the solution. Inexperienced people expect problems to be settled instantly. But experienced people are like the master sculptor who keeps striking the marble block with steady blows of the hammer. Unlike the rookie who expects to split the stone with one blow, he knows if he just keeps working at it he will eventually succeed.
Soul food: Gen 6:9-8:4; Matt 24:37-51
2019-08-17
Nehemiah 6:11 NIV
Third, you must face the problem. When Nehemiah was threatened by his enemies, some of his friends told him to hide in the temple. But he replied, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!” As a result Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem in two months – an amazing feat. Years ago a popular television commercial about addiction and abuse showed a typical family at home. The children were playing, the mother was vacuuming, and the father was reading the newspaper. They could have been a conventional family anywhere, except for one problem: there was a huge elephant in the room with them. Even though they could see it was making life difficult and they had to work around it, they seemed to be ignoring it and pretending it didn’t exist. That ad gave rise to the slogan: “The elephant in the room.” It applies to problems we don’t want to address, so we pretend that everything is fine. We typically react to a problem in four ways: (1) Flee it: We try to escape, but the problem always follows us. (2) Forget it: We hope it will go away if we don’t think about it. But left alone, problems tend to get worse. (3) Fight it: What we resist persists. And problems are no exception. (4) Face it: We look at the issue realistically and deal with it. If we’re wise we reach for God’s assistance and “boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear'” (Hebrews 13:6 NKJV).
Soul food: Gal 1-3; Matt 18:21-35; Ps 119:105-112; Prov 18:9
2019-08-16
Psalm 28:7 NKJV
Second, you must identify the real problem. Sometimes a doctor can cure you, other times he or she prescribes medication that enables you to live more comfortably with your problem. But first they have to diagnose it. Philosopher Abraham Kaplan makes this distinction between problems and predicaments: “A problem is something you can do something about. If you can’t do something about it, then it’s not a problem, it’s a predicament. That means it’s something that must be coped with; something that must be endured. When you treat a predicament as a problem you can become frustrated, angry, and depressed. You waste energy and make bad decisions. Then when all your attempts fail, you give up and see yourself as a victim.” Here’s an example: If you’re married, perhaps you are a “morning person” and your spouse is a “night person,” or vice versa. That’s a predicament. You can’t change it. You can’t change the way people are wired internally. And if you try, you and your spouse will experience lots of conflict and there’ll be no resolution. However, your difficulty in finding ways to spend time together because of your different bents is a problem, and that can be solved. And here’s another thought: Sometimes God will deliver you from a bad situation and other times He will use it to develop your character and make you more like Christ. Yes, He can turn your sigh into a song! David said, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.”
Soul food: Judg 19:16-21:25; Matt 18:10-20; Ps 119:97-104; Prov 18:6-8
Psalm 28:7 NLV
Tweedens, moet jy die regte probleem identifiseer. Soms kan ‘n dokter jou genees, ander tye kan hy of sy medikasie voorskryf wat jou in staat stel om met jou probleem in meer gemak saam te lewe. Eerstens moet hulle dit egter diagnoseer. Die filosoof Abraham Kaplan tref hierdie onderskeid tussen probleme en penaries: “‘n Probleem is iets waaraan jy iets kan doen. As jy niks daaraan kan doen nie, is dit nie ‘n probleem nie, dis ‘n penarie. Dit beteken dat dit iets is wat jy moet hanteer, iets is wat jy moet verduur. Wanneer jy ‘n penarie as ‘n probleem hanteer, kan jy gefrustreerd, kwaad en depressief word. Jy mors jou energie en maak slegte besluite. Dis dan wanneer al jou pogings misluk, jy tou opgooi en jouself as ‘n slagoffer sien.” Hier is ‘n voorbeeld: Wanneer jy getroud is, is jy dalk ‘n ‘oggendpersoon’ en jou eggenoot is ‘n ‘nagpersoon,’ of andersom. Dis ‘n penarie. Jy kan dit nie verander nie. Jy kan nie die manier waarop mense aanmekaar gesit is verander nie. As jy probeer, sal jy en jou eggenoot baie konflik ervaar en sal daar geen oplossing gevind word nie. Jou gesukkel om maniere te kry om as gevolg van julle verskillende roetines tyd saam te spandeer, is egter ‘n probleem en dit kan opgelos word. Hier is nog ‘n gedagte: Soms sal God jou uit ‘n slegte situasie red en soms sal Hy dit gebruik om jou karakter te ontwikkel en jou meer soos Christus te maak. Dawid het gesê: ‘Die Here is my krag, my beskermer wat ek met my hele hart vertrou. Hy help my en my hart is vol vreugde. Daarom dank ek Hom met my lied.’
Sielskos: Rig 19:16-21:25; Matt 18:10-20; Ps 119:97-104; Spr 18:6-8
