Be Confident (8 of 8)
Series: The ''Be'' Attitudes
Tony Thomas
Matthew 5:10-12
In his book, The Problem with Pain, C.S. writes:
''God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain. Pain is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.''
The eighth Be Attitude reads (Matthew 5):
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
One reason for our unhappiness is our inability to make everybody else like us. Satan has convinced us that we can't be happy unless we're liked. So, if somebody gives us the cold shoulder - or insults our sensibilities - we're miserable.
Over Christmas, I did a little cleaning in my office. I threw out some older books, discarded old files, and found a pile of notes that I had kept over the years.
That pile was a reminder that I had had a disappointing week. It was the week of March 25, 1995 (24 years ago). Someone phoned with a request to meet me the next morning. He said, ''I want to discuss a couple of things with you.'' I wrote, ''Oh boy. What have I done?''
I spent the rest of the day worrying about that meeting! A million different possibilities raced through my mind. Did I say something in my sermon? Did one of my kids do something at school? I was cranky with co-workers and I didn't sleep that night.
The next morning I drove to breakfast dreading the conversation. I ordered toast (I wasn't about to waste money on a reprimand). My friend chatted aimlessly while I waited for the bomb to drop. I crossed a hundred bridges that never materialized. Finally he asked, ''I'm unhappy at work; would you pray for me?''
I jotted down some notes because I knew what was wrong. I respec ...
Series: The ''Be'' Attitudes
Tony Thomas
Matthew 5:10-12
In his book, The Problem with Pain, C.S. writes:
''God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain. Pain is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.''
The eighth Be Attitude reads (Matthew 5):
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
One reason for our unhappiness is our inability to make everybody else like us. Satan has convinced us that we can't be happy unless we're liked. So, if somebody gives us the cold shoulder - or insults our sensibilities - we're miserable.
Over Christmas, I did a little cleaning in my office. I threw out some older books, discarded old files, and found a pile of notes that I had kept over the years.
That pile was a reminder that I had had a disappointing week. It was the week of March 25, 1995 (24 years ago). Someone phoned with a request to meet me the next morning. He said, ''I want to discuss a couple of things with you.'' I wrote, ''Oh boy. What have I done?''
I spent the rest of the day worrying about that meeting! A million different possibilities raced through my mind. Did I say something in my sermon? Did one of my kids do something at school? I was cranky with co-workers and I didn't sleep that night.
The next morning I drove to breakfast dreading the conversation. I ordered toast (I wasn't about to waste money on a reprimand). My friend chatted aimlessly while I waited for the bomb to drop. I crossed a hundred bridges that never materialized. Finally he asked, ''I'm unhappy at work; would you pray for me?''
I jotted down some notes because I knew what was wrong. I respec ...
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