Pastor's Corner 15 Nov 2007 10:23 pm
I want to know what you think…
You know me—I see something, and my Aspie self runs away with literal images of what the underlying meaning could be. So instead of me ranting about yet another church sign, I want to know what you think. Here’s what I saw:
on 25 Dec 2007 at 8:57 pm 1.Amanda said …
At first glance, I tensed a little. The words “It is His Will” sound almost as an order. “You have no choice. You will give thanks to God in all things because He demands it, He makes it so.” But, when I give a few more seconds thought to it (as I’m sure the sign makers surely have- it would take a few minutes to come up with that statement and arrange it on the sign), I realize that can not be what it means. It is God’s Will that we would give thanks to Him in all things. In other words, it is His desire that we give thanks to Him in everything. The reason is not only has He given us all things in our life, but He also created us to worship Him. So, I imagine He is greatly saddened when we don’t acknowledge and give thanks for His love!
An example of what I am meaning to say would be Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane. It was God’s Will that Jesus die, but Jesus still had to chose it. Jesus begged for that cup to pass him by at first. His humanity certainly didn’t desire to be beaten and crucified. But then he said simply, “Not my will, but yours be done.”
on 31 Dec 2007 at 7:09 am 2.April Baker said …
Hum. That’s certainly a perspective I hadn’t thought of. I always of think of the worst–like Lucy having a massive seizure, and wonder how that could be a kind and loving God’s will. Instead, I give thanks that Lucy was brought into a loving family who would make sure that she got the care she needed, and I’m thankful for the bond she and I share as a result of her illness. I have trouble believing that the actual seizures are God’s will–I am more inclined to think that it was God’s will that I should pick her out and take her home.