Look at how rapidly the time passes! (My neglect for this blog is certainly showing :)
Anyway, I had the deep joy of being able to preach on "Contentment" recently, which surprisingly is something the Church skirts around (...in favour of a Prosperity-laden message in some quarters).
That message will be up here soon, but it is long...even by my standards. Sadly, what you're forced to cram into 40 minutes using the 'gift of gab', turns into quite a long transcript when finally penned down. But I must admit, the message is beautiful.
Instead, on this tour, I'll give you one analogy of life that, unfortunately, I had to delete from my sermon (time constraints!)
...So, I was in my bathroom the other morning getting ready to wash my face; then, on the glistening sink surface, I spotted this little ant. [seems everything from humidity to rain to wintry cold occasionally brings some ants into anyone's life]. That little ant was perched next to a drop of water, and he was literally cleaning himself so meticulously, just sprucing himself up - Antennae, Legs, Body.
Like a good episode of the Discovery Channel's shows (minus the "Peeping-Tom" factor), I watched this intently for about 3 minutes...
I bet everyone has one of those moments when you come face-to-face with the Creator through something on this earth. I'm more impressed when it comes through the simple things - the kind money could never ever buy.
I imagined for a second where a situation similar to this could have played out, and my mind just set on Jesus as He told His disciples not to worry. In the midst of blessing His followers with this message, His mind (and probably His gaze) was transfixed by the wild Lilies of the field, and He noted that those lilies in their mere simplicity were more marvelously clothed than great King Solomon could ever have dreamed. [And who better to know this than Jesus, since this whole world was created through Him]
I have something of a love/hate relationship when it comes to grass and/or wild herbs. When I took my Plant Taxonomy class, classifying and identifying massive trees was hard enough. But Dr. David Foster - good friend and upright individual as he was - always knew what would draw a protest from me in particular:
"...today, let's study and classify some grass..."
For someone who, despite having an Agricultural Consultant for a father, remained practically disinterested in plant life, it was beyond difficult. God (sadistically) had placed so much detail into "mere grass" such that to differentiate it I literally had to be armed with a magnifying glass in my hand, and the added Patience of a Saint.
So, yes, Jesus example of the Lilies is definitely not lost on me; and neither is another thing - looking at that ant that morning, it reminded me that if God can put that much thought, detail, beauty into the small unnoticeable things of this world...THEN WHAT MORE WILL HE DO FOR HIS OWN CHILDREN?
Take home message: Be content!
To put a new spin on a cliche, "God is in the details".
Most of the time, we're probably hoping He moves a mountain just so we know He's around, but I'm happier knowing that
"...He knows my name, He knows my every thought, He sees each tear that falls, and He hears me when I call."
Thank you for everything Father! For making everything beautiful in its time, and placing Eternity within our hearts. May we inch closer towards beginning to understand.
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