“O Lord, do not your eyes look for truth? You have struck them down, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent.” Jeremiah 5:3 ESV.
Mr. Bob Newhart is a standup comedian and actor noted for his deadpan delivery. One memorable, humorous routine involved him playing a psychologist providing services for $5 a session. His one-line response after listening to the patient’s problem was always the same: “stop it.” No matter the problem, the solution was simply for you to stop doing it. A simple reply that in many ways is funny because we humans like to make our personal problems seem larger and more difficult than the challenges of others.
Yet Bob Newhart’s response is actually the best advice we can implement. (This of course does not apply to conditions caused by physical or mental structural damages.) When the problem is caused by harmful behavioral or attitudinal responses, something needs to change. As long as we continue to respond in the same routine fashion, how do we realistically expect the results to be any different?
The challenging circumstances we face each day is the opportunity to lean more on the Triune God. As we lean more on God, we witness his grace in action. The process slowly changes our heart as we develop a trust walk with the Almighty. This change of heart the Bible denotes as repentance. It is changing how we think and respond to the world around us. Instead of centering the pain on our shoulders, or throwing the pain in the face of others, we learn to give the pain over to Jesus who helps carry us through the ordeal via the Holy Spirit.
So the next time to find yourself experiencing a negative outcome, review the process that got you there, and ask God for the strength to change it. In other words, stop responding in your old way and ask God to show you how you can respond differently. Ask Him for wisdom. Ask Him for more love and patience. Ask Him for whatever you need. Like a caring Father, He will gladly provide you with the help you need. Otherwise, if you don’t change, who are you going to become?
Rooting For You in Christ!
Dr. Mike
Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
* Great Business Emulates a Good God
* Be Radical…Follow Christ!
* Simply The Messenger
* Unequally Married
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