Maturity
Pastoral Renewal, February 1985, p. 111
Quotes
- The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials. - Chinese Proverb, New Man, March/April 1997, p. 18
- You're never too old to grow up. - Shirley Conran, Savages
- Strong sons of God are not perfected by childish pursuits. - David Breese, Living For Eternity, Moody Press, 1988, p. 78
- "If you stop and ask yourself why you are not so devoted as the (early) Christians, your own heart will tell you that it is neither through ignorance nor inability, but purely because you never thoroughly intended it." - William Law, Courage - You Can Stand Strong in the Face of Fear, Jon Johnston, 1990, Scripture Press Publications, p. 34.
- History is the record of an encounter between character and circumstance. - Donald Creighton, Towards the Discovery of Canada
- You're never too old to grow up. - Shirley Conran, Savages
I met a young man not long ago who dives for exotic fish for aquariums. He told me that one of the most popular aquarium fish is the shark. He explained that if you catch a small shark and confine it, it will stay a size proportionate to the aquarium you put it in. Sharks can be six inches long yet fully matured. But if you turn them loose in the ocean, they grow to their normal length of eight feet.
That is like what happens to some Christians. I have seen some of the cutest little six-inch Christians who swim around in a little puddle. You can look at them and comment on how fine they are. But if you were to put them out into a larger arena&md;into the broad view of a whole creation&md;they might become great.
God help us not to be confined to a little puddle out of insecurity, but instead to see that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. He made us, and if we will both have internal integrity and relate ourselves to the larger structures in the ways he has ordained, we will be able to serve him according to a holistic vision of his purpose on the earth.
