If Only...
posted by matt beres | | Posted On 2.10.2010 at 1:30 PM
When I was in school I was the chubby kid. Yep. It's true. The.Chubby.Kid. You know him. You know him for three reasons: 1.) You ARE the chubby kid. 2 .) You're friends with the chubby kid. or 3.) You make fun of the chubby kid. Everyone knows the chubby kid.
I really didn't like getting picked on; I mean, who actually enjoys that kind of attention? So, when I got to high school and got a little self confidence I promised myself I would never make fun of the chubby kid. I also promised myself that I would use my experience to make light of rough situations in life.
You know, as I look back on that experience I now realize I had two choices. 1.) I could've been mad at everyone who made fun of me and ignored them for the rest of high school. My defenses would be up and I would have walls around everyone and keep them at a distance. OR 2.) I can use my past to fuel my future and the choices I WILL make.
The Bible gives us great examples of people who used their past to fuel their future. One of my favorites is Saul. I mean, Paul. Well...read this and you'll figure out the confusion.
There was a guy named Saul who was the main man when it came to killing people. He was the best of the best in that department. And to make matters worse hit targets were all people who believed in, and followed the principles of Jesus. He was a great killer - oxymoron, huh? Anyways, one day he was traveling to a city called Damascus and God met him on the road. No, God didn't come in a bush this time and didn't use a talking donkey. Instead the sky opened up and a great light came down on him. In fact, the audible voice of God came out of the sky. Basically, God asked Saul why he would persecute the people the follow Jesus - and said when he persecuted Christians he was in turn persecuting God too. Saul was upset and maybe a little embarrassed - and when the heavens closed up and the voice went away - Saul was blind. His encounter with God on the road actually caused him to believe in Jesus and his blindness went away. Now, here comes the cool part...
Immediately after his blindness was gone he joined with the disciples in teaching about Jesus. IMMEDIATELY. His identity was so changed that he wanted a new name, so he changed hi name to Paul. Paul used his past identity as Saul to fuel his passion for teaching others about Jesus. In fact, Paul went on to author 13 books of the New Testament!
It's tempting for us to get caught up in our past regrets or past sins, but Jesus doesn't want that for us. Instead he wants us to have life - and life to the full. AND Jesus wants us to take our past and use it to fuel our passion for the future. You see, all of us have a "past" and we can use it to help others not make the same mistake, or not become bitter.
What is in your past that you can use to fuel your future?
I really didn't like getting picked on; I mean, who actually enjoys that kind of attention? So, when I got to high school and got a little self confidence I promised myself I would never make fun of the chubby kid. I also promised myself that I would use my experience to make light of rough situations in life.
You know, as I look back on that experience I now realize I had two choices. 1.) I could've been mad at everyone who made fun of me and ignored them for the rest of high school. My defenses would be up and I would have walls around everyone and keep them at a distance. OR 2.) I can use my past to fuel my future and the choices I WILL make.
The Bible gives us great examples of people who used their past to fuel their future. One of my favorites is Saul. I mean, Paul. Well...read this and you'll figure out the confusion.
There was a guy named Saul who was the main man when it came to killing people. He was the best of the best in that department. And to make matters worse hit targets were all people who believed in, and followed the principles of Jesus. He was a great killer - oxymoron, huh? Anyways, one day he was traveling to a city called Damascus and God met him on the road. No, God didn't come in a bush this time and didn't use a talking donkey. Instead the sky opened up and a great light came down on him. In fact, the audible voice of God came out of the sky. Basically, God asked Saul why he would persecute the people the follow Jesus - and said when he persecuted Christians he was in turn persecuting God too. Saul was upset and maybe a little embarrassed - and when the heavens closed up and the voice went away - Saul was blind. His encounter with God on the road actually caused him to believe in Jesus and his blindness went away. Now, here comes the cool part...
Immediately after his blindness was gone he joined with the disciples in teaching about Jesus. IMMEDIATELY. His identity was so changed that he wanted a new name, so he changed hi name to Paul. Paul used his past identity as Saul to fuel his passion for teaching others about Jesus. In fact, Paul went on to author 13 books of the New Testament!
It's tempting for us to get caught up in our past regrets or past sins, but Jesus doesn't want that for us. Instead he wants us to have life - and life to the full. AND Jesus wants us to take our past and use it to fuel our passion for the future. You see, all of us have a "past" and we can use it to help others not make the same mistake, or not become bitter.
What is in your past that you can use to fuel your future?
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Great post, Matt. THanks for sharing.