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Remotes and God

 


It has been a frustrating day! I ordered and received a fan remote to replace a lost one. The remote looked quite different from the original, came with no instructions, obviously did not take the usual batteries (button instead of AAA) but did not give any indication as to what size battery it did take. It had been difficult to even negotiate the website to order it. My brother is staying with us currently so he telephoned the business. The person who answered the call obviously did not have English as a first language and was having difficulty understanding the problem. Finally getting through to someone who apparently would know, we were told it took triple A batteries! No, it obviously takes a button battery. This should be simple!  After a lengthy conversation it turns out it is a universal remote and takes a common button battery, one of which my brother happened to have. It works!

 

As I pondered on the frustration for something so simple, I wondered if it is like that for God? Does He get frustrated when what we do or say doesn’t line up with our faith? Does He sometimes feel that he is unable to ‘get through to us?’ Unlike the business above, He gives us a set of instructions that covers every temptation common to man and is faithful and won’t allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear but will provide a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13 paraphrased)—it’s a universal solution; one size fits all. How blessed that even ‘while we were still sinners, Christ died for us’ (Romans 5:8). How wonderful that ‘if we confess our sins He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness’ (1 John 1:9). I don’t think God ever gets frustrated with us; He knows us better than we know ourselves so He already knew what he was getting when He offered us the gift of salvation through Jesus! Put very simply, He loves us and wants the best for us even when the best might be painful. In the words of Charles Wesley:

 

My God I am thine,

What a comfort divine,

What a blessing to know

That my Jesus is mine!

 

A quick note on my pursuit of Holiness—in his book ‘Helps to Holiness’ Samuel Logan Brengle suggests that to pursue holiness we must study God’s word, pray, practice unflinching self-examination and rigid self-denial, have hearty obedience and attend church regularly (my paraphrase). What a challenge, especially the rigid self-denial!

 

I am an avid reader of Christian fiction. As I studied and prayed over this passage, I felt convicted to spend at least as much time reading The Word as I did reading other books! I have started trying to put this into practice. It takes commitment, discipline AND ACTION! Help me Jesus!

 

May you all refuse to ‘be comfortable’ and may He place a hunger in your heart to pursue Holiness.

 

 

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