Matthew 13:3, 7-9, 22-23 Then He spoke many things to them
in parables, saying: “Behold, a Sower went out to sow. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold,
some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and
the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he
becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and
understands it, who
indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
I remember back in 1994 or ’95, my wife and I were invited to join a
small group Bible Study by a Christian friend that I met through our son’s
Little League baseball. They were going through a topical video series on
relationships and parenting by Author, Speaker, and Christian Family
Psychologist Gary Smalley, titled “Hidden Keys to Loving Relationships”. The
series was so good that I borrowed the 18 tape set and showed it at our church
for adult Wednesday night studies. The Sixth Key was “How to Become Free From
the Negative Emotions of Anger, Hurt Feelings, Loneliness, Worry and Fear”
(throw in Envy, Jealousy, Sexual Possessiveness). Sound interesting. The
problem is that if our life was illustrated by a lamp, what are we plugging
into for the source to light up our life? The lesson states that there are
three earthly sources that we tend to look to find happiness and avoid the pain
of negative emotions, bring us quality life or love, joy and peace.
The first is “People”. Smalley states that we think we need to have a
mate, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a close friend, children, perfect parents and
so on to meet our deepest needs. But even in intimate relationships we can
experience hurt, frustration and disappointment because other people are
preoccupied with meeting their own needs. Many of us try to use people to give
us quality life, hoping they will bring us lasting fulfillment. Most often, we
discover that instead of fulfillment, people are actually dimming the light
that we had. We forget that people will never really give us the quality life
we want, yet we still expect it from them. The reason we become angry, fearful,
lonely, et cetera is level of unrealistic expectations. The more we expect from
people, the greater our potential of experiencing negative emotions we desire
to avoid.
The Second is “Places”. Smalley says that we also tend to look to various
places to be our source of happiness. We feel if we move to a new home near a
beach or a cottage in the mountains, vacations to exotic destinations or
exciting resorts, away from all the hustle and bustle of everyday life, then
we’ll finally be at a place where we can be happy. Usually, places bring
happiness for a season. Even the most spectacular view and exciting places can
become ordinary and routine. Not to mention that after going to the most beautiful
places on earth, there is almost always a certain amount of let-down when we
have to come back to our real world. Again, the focus on unrealistic
expectations on gaining a “satisfying place” that sets the stage for anger.
The Third is “Things”. Smalley points to money, a new job, increased
talents, a new car … all these things and much more are often looked on as a
main source of life. Many people feel that they’ll never be successful or
satisfied until they have acquired a certain amount of possessions or things
they’ve longed for. I’ll never forget my co-worker telling me, “I see it, I
want it, I get it.” Advertisers know how to market products so that they’ll
appear to not only satisfy us, but make us happy as well. The problem is that
these things all too soon begin to dim our light and short circuit the hope of
fulfillment in life. Again, it’s not having things that causes anger or hurt
feelings, it’s expecting that they bring happiness that causes our unhappiness.
Philippians
4:19 And this same God who
takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which
have been given to us in Christ Jesus.
4 comments:
hello! I am inviting you to join my Christian Blog :) Just click this link >> http://greatlovefortheheavenlyfather.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-moment-when-i-knew-god.html
and then once you've opened it, there is a small followers tab on the right side of my page, and click join this site. And by that you can always be updated. :) Thank you so much! :)
Nice post, Brian!
I must continually check myself for idols. My computer is often one of them. If I'm turning on my computer before picking up my Bible in the morning, I've got an idol issue. Thank God for His grace! Truly.
Thank you Chezka for reading my Christian Blog and inviting me to read yours. I will certain come by your Blog site sister-in-Christ and see what godly thoughts and messages you are ministering and encouraging to a world in desperate need of Jesus Christ. Blessings to you.
Larri, The idol temptations surround us daily, but once recognized, and with the help of the Lord, we can faithful live without worshiping them. But they are deceptively alluring to our fallen flesh desires and perceived and wanted emotional social needs. Who, what and where meets our needs? We shouldn't kid ourselves that the Galatians 5 battle is not going on daily. We need to train ourselves to see the truth and walk in the Spirit. Thank you for your great comment. Blessings.
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