Lucy, our old goat and Mama our old horse both have one thing in common.
They suffer from arthritis. What they don't have in common is their
attitude about their medication.
Lucy accepts the apples dipped
in the powdered medication with relish, munching and crunching her way
through them. Mama however turns her nose up at any and all such
offerings refusing to ingest that which would bring her the reward of
pain relief.
The difference between these two creatures has often
made me wonder if I might at times be doing the same thing as Mama, in
regards to a certain aspect of my Christian walk.
People are
marvellous. They are made in the image of God. And yet is it just me, or
have you too noticed what a total pain they can be from time to time.
Their actions can be most painfully annoying, inconsiderate, rude,
frustrating, obnoxious and counterproductive.
And yet what does
God say? "Love your neighbour as yourself and do not become weary in
doing good." Mmmm . . . Yeah right . . . That's a bit of a bitter pill
to swallow, is what I sometimes think about some of my so called
neighbours and these commands. And yet the psalmist has written:
"How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!"
He had obviously lived long enough and been obedient enough to know
that all of God's commands, all of his words are good and right and
lovely and reap a wonderful harvest if we will only choose to ingest and
employ them as we should.
So the next time I find my
neighbours' actions painfully annoying, frustrating, rude, obnoxious,
inconsiderate and counterproductive I am going to choose rightly. Like
Lucy the goat, I am going to take the pain relief medication God is
offering me. I am going to choose to love my neighbour as myself and not
growing weary of doing good, believing that at the proper time I shall
indeed reap a harvest of just reward.
Prayer: Father God, help us
this day to ingest and employ with relish the sweetness of your words
which leads to the health of both our own and our neighbours well-being.
In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
Lynne Phipps
Atlin, B.C.
