My silly sense of humor can get me into trouble sometimes. While helping out with some stuff at a friend's house, I made a silly comment after we finished our task "Good enough for government work". I implied that government work didn't require the best quality or craftsmanship. I got a weak laugh from my friend, who later shared that he worked for a local government. He didn't think the joke was very funny! Yikes!
People can often think this about their good works "Good enough to get into heaven". They look at what they have done. They compare themselves to others. They live a good life by most moral standards. The problem is that they haven't accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Jesus is the key. There is nothing we can do on this earth to earn our salvation except give our lives to him!
Lord, we can never be good enough to get into heaven. We need to accept your Son!
Simply Saturday
Timing...is everything
I have thought a lot about timing the past few months. Timing is something that we don't always understand nor can we always control it. I liken it to a well tuned comedy routine! Yes, I know. I am a silly old bear at times! Here are a couple of examples.
"Timing.... is everything". Good comedians know how to time what they say. Pausing between phrases. Giving you time to think about what they said and react. Giving you a funny look during a pause to increase the impact of the punch line. These are all timing techniques. God does that, too. I swear that some of the punchlines are the best ever! Since God created time, don't you think he has the best sense of it for us? That thought just came out while I was writing. I never thought of it that way before. How about you?
"The look". I used to love the Carol Burnett Show. The ensemble cast had the best sense of comedic timing ever. A great timing effect is "the look". Harvey would give Tim some impossible task or order, then Tim would give him the helpless look while he hopelessly attempted it in a hilarious sight gag. It was all Harvey could do not to laugh out loud (which he did at times!). While we obviously can't get "the look" from God, I know I often give "the look" to God when I am hopelessly attempting to accomplish what I think is an impossible task or order. Anything come to mind?
My favorite is "wait for it, wait for it". Well, I mean it is my favorite in a comedy sense -- not in real life! You know how this works. There is a sight gag starting to develop that is going to be hilarious. It may take a few seconds or minutes for it to develop. Ding! It happens and you laugh and laugh!
There is usually a very good reason that God asks us to wait for something he promised us. I liken it to baking a turkey. "What?" you might say. If you have ever baked a turkey in the oven or cooked a pork loin on a grill, the outside of the piece of meat often looks "done". We know from experience that we must continue cooking it until it is cooked all the way through to a desirable temperature. It has been my experience that many times I think that I am "done" or ready to receive God's promise. If I am honest with myself, I am not. For example, I recently thought about the effects a supplication that I made to God would have on my life if he actually granted it. Whew... I hadn't really thought about it. It is amazing how God will teach us stuff about ourselves if we open up to him!
Remember. God's time is not always our time. His timing is always better for us. Trust him. Be patient.
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Trusting God’s faithfulness dispels our fearfulness. - Our Daily Bread web site
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