You wouldn’t think that a nine-year-old throwing a baseball would crack a windshield. I mean, he’s got a decent arm but he’s no Roger Clemens even without steroids. The thing is, we just had our van windshield replaced three weeks ago after a rock hit it on Hwy. 13, chipped it about the size of a nickel and eventually led to a larger crack.
I probably should have lowered the deductible on my comprehensive insurance coverage, but I didn’t. Maybe I should have moved the van into the garage before we broke out the gloves.
I guess the ball had to hit it just right. I’m pretty sure it’s not the first time that a baseball has hit our windshield. But I suppose the right force at the right angle in the right spot will do it.
Windshields take a lot of abuse, if you think about it. They’re often getting rained on and they take a lot of heat. Bugs like to smear their guts all over them and birds seem to frequently mistake them for the toilet. And sometimes the wayward baseball is all it takes to make them crack.
Have you ever been there? Ever felt like a van windshield? Know what it’s like to be abused, to take a bunch of heat, to have people smear your name and get dumped on? Feel like you’ve had enough, and just one wayward word or action is all it’s going to take to make you crack?
Let me say that if you’re at the end of your rope about to crack, let go of the stupid rope and hold on to Jesus instead! Life is tough. It’s unfair. People can be mean. You get taken advantage of. Bad stuff happens. Let go of your rope, let go of whatever you’re trying to hold onto – it’s never going save you from neither the trouble life brings nor the trouble you bring upon yourself. Let go, and hold on to something solid, something that will save you.
That something is a Someone, and His name is Jesus. Maybe you’re like the apostle Paul, a faithful believer in Christ, but yet you’re suffering hardship and great pressure far beyond your ability to endure. Perhaps you’re despairing of life itself and feeling the sentence of death in your heart. Hold on to Jesus, dear friend, and let Him hold on to you!
Here’s how Paul surveyed his situation: “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us…” (2 Cor. 1:9-10).
He is able – more than able – to deliver you, to rescue you from the miry pit and set your feet on level ground. Let go of all the stuff that’s dragging you down and choking the life out of you and robbing you of joy and peace, and set your hope on Jesus. Turn your heart to Him, trust Him, and walk in His ways.
Or maybe you’re just feeling exhausted and weary from the burdens you’re carrying around. Hear the words of Christ Jesus: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28). There’s a rest for your troubled soul that’s more real than the air you’re breathing.
And listen to 1 Pet. 5:7: “Cast all your anxiety on him, for he cares for you.” In Jesus you find a Savior who cares more about you than you’ll ever know. He knows how to handle the things you get so worked up about. But you have to come to Him through faith.
Listen, if you’re about to crack from life’s hardships and troubles, if you think there’s no way out and all hope is gone, then why not turn your life over to Jesus? You have absolutely nothing to lose and positively everything to gain. Jesus gave His life on the cross to save you from death and eternal hell. He conquered the grave when He rose from the dead. And He longs for you to let go of the stupid rope and hold on to Him in faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment