LORD, WE NEED A BLESSING (3 OF 6)
by Steve Wagers
Scripture: HAGGAI 1:10-15
This content is part of a series.
Lord, We Need a Blessing (3 of 6)
Series: A Journey through Haggai
Steve Wagers
Haggai 1:9-15
INTRODUCTION
Years ago, a quite unusual incident happened to the famous Dr. Norman Vincent Peale. He was travelling, on a train, and he went to the diner for breakfast. The waiter seated him across the table from a man and his wife, who were complete strangers to him. But, as Peale, and the husband were talking, the man's wife suddenly blurted out, "This grapefruit is so bitter, it isn't fit to eat." In just a few minutes, the wife interrupted the conversation again, saying, "There is a terrible draft in here." It wasn't long until she had interrupted a third time, complaining about something else.
About that time, the husband said, "You mustn't let my wife disturb you, for she is really a fine person. In fact, she is very clever, for she is a manufacturer." Peale was astonished that unassuming woman was a manufacturer, so he asked, "So what does she manufacturer?" Still smiling, the husband replied, "She manufacturers her own unhappiness!" 1
Abraham Lincoln once observed that it had been his experience that most people were about as happy as they wanted to be. He said that, "Life is determined not so much by what it brings to us, but by what we bring to it." 2
I have found, in several years of full-time ministry, this is true in many cases. Many times it is not we face that affects us, but it is how we respond to what we face. It may be in any shape, size, color, or variety; but, usually the problem is not as great as we imagine it to be. Take someone who feels that someone is upset with them, or offended. Before long, that person will feel as if everyone in the world is against them, all because they have blown it completely out of proportion. It is not the problem itself, but the response to that problem.
In this passage of Haggai's prophecy, the problem is not the Jews reaction, but rather the problem is one that they have broug ...
Series: A Journey through Haggai
Steve Wagers
Haggai 1:9-15
INTRODUCTION
Years ago, a quite unusual incident happened to the famous Dr. Norman Vincent Peale. He was travelling, on a train, and he went to the diner for breakfast. The waiter seated him across the table from a man and his wife, who were complete strangers to him. But, as Peale, and the husband were talking, the man's wife suddenly blurted out, "This grapefruit is so bitter, it isn't fit to eat." In just a few minutes, the wife interrupted the conversation again, saying, "There is a terrible draft in here." It wasn't long until she had interrupted a third time, complaining about something else.
About that time, the husband said, "You mustn't let my wife disturb you, for she is really a fine person. In fact, she is very clever, for she is a manufacturer." Peale was astonished that unassuming woman was a manufacturer, so he asked, "So what does she manufacturer?" Still smiling, the husband replied, "She manufacturers her own unhappiness!" 1
Abraham Lincoln once observed that it had been his experience that most people were about as happy as they wanted to be. He said that, "Life is determined not so much by what it brings to us, but by what we bring to it." 2
I have found, in several years of full-time ministry, this is true in many cases. Many times it is not we face that affects us, but it is how we respond to what we face. It may be in any shape, size, color, or variety; but, usually the problem is not as great as we imagine it to be. Take someone who feels that someone is upset with them, or offended. Before long, that person will feel as if everyone in the world is against them, all because they have blown it completely out of proportion. It is not the problem itself, but the response to that problem.
In this passage of Haggai's prophecy, the problem is not the Jews reaction, but rather the problem is one that they have broug ...
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