Sunday, January 9, 2011

What are you holding on to?

A hunter, to catch a baboon, will put bait in a hole in a tree. The baboon will put his hand in, grab the bait, and will not be able to pull his hand out. Instead of letting go of the bait, the baboon will stay there for days with his hand in the tree, until he either starves or the hunter returns to kill him. What am I holding on to that may be slowly killing me? It's so easy to think, "You stupid baboon! Just let go of the bait and you'll be fine!". But I do the same thing, holding on to something that God wants me to let go of. It's just not as obvious to me as the stubborn baboon! Open my eyes Lord!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Value

Heard another analogy. Suppose someone offers you an old, grungy, beat up $100 bill. It's faded, dirty, crumpled. Would you take it? Of course! It still has value. Just because it is not brand new does not mean it isn't worth the same; it continues to hold it's value. God sees us that way. We may be "soiled", dirty, imperfect. But God sees us as valuable! Isn't that great to know?!

Monday, January 3, 2011

A New Year!

I heard a terrific analogy today on my way home from work. An airbag is in your car to protect you. Yes it may hurt if it goes off, but it saves you from worse pain. We may be going through a painful time, but God may have allowed this to protect us from worse pain. It's hard to learn to be content in whatever state we are in. It's easy to think it, to know it in our head, but to truly be content is another thing.
This is a new year, a new chance to put into practice what the Bible says and to truly apply it to our lives. I'm so thankful for new years, new beginnings, another chance.