In the Meantime: Where's Your Focus?
By Andy Jones from North Point
What do you do when there's nothing you can do? When something comes that you didn't prepare for?
Two consecutive children= W/ AUTISM
Maybe God was punishing them.
Maybe we shouldn't have married.
Why? (It's normal to ask questions.)
I'll never be happy again.
Nothing good can come from this.
My precious God-given kids became a problem to solve.
-
JOHN 9 -- THE MAN BORN BLIND
Disciples noticed something that wasn't right.
'Who did this? His parents or his sins?'
Neither. THIS HAPPENED SO THAT THE WORKS OF GOD MIGHT BE DISPLAYED.
The point of the story is NOT the miracle. It's the conversation before it.
We're focused on how to solve something. What went wrong, how we can avoid it, how to fix it.
FOCUSED ON THE WRONG THING.
God can be on display in your circumstances... IN THE MEANTIME.
It's our nature: To look at what's wrong.
Hindsight is 20/20.
*When you focus on what's wrong, you lose sight of what God is doing/making right... in the meantime. (It changed his heart, his attitude.)
Example:
Teacher took a liking on Eli (child w/ autism). Developed relationship with her family, became a Christian. Then husband became a Christian.
+ Autism taught him to be a better father, husband.
God is in the business of something beautiful out what I feel is terrible.
God what are you doing in this? What are you doing in the meantime?
I CAN MAKE IT! GOD CAN BE ON DISPLAY.
God COULD give you a story to tell and an audience to tell it to.
God is not absent, apathetic, angry.
CONTENTMENT: Christ in you, empowering you.
What do you do when there's nothing you can do? When something comes that you didn't prepare for?
Two consecutive children= W/ AUTISM
Maybe God was punishing them.
Maybe we shouldn't have married.
Why? (It's normal to ask questions.)
I'll never be happy again.
Nothing good can come from this.
My precious God-given kids became a problem to solve.
-
JOHN 9 -- THE MAN BORN BLIND
Disciples noticed something that wasn't right.
'Who did this? His parents or his sins?'
Neither. THIS HAPPENED SO THAT THE WORKS OF GOD MIGHT BE DISPLAYED.
The point of the story is NOT the miracle. It's the conversation before it.
We're focused on how to solve something. What went wrong, how we can avoid it, how to fix it.
FOCUSED ON THE WRONG THING.
God can be on display in your circumstances... IN THE MEANTIME.
It's our nature: To look at what's wrong.
Hindsight is 20/20.
*When you focus on what's wrong, you lose sight of what God is doing/making right... in the meantime. (It changed his heart, his attitude.)
Example:
Teacher took a liking on Eli (child w/ autism). Developed relationship with her family, became a Christian. Then husband became a Christian.
+ Autism taught him to be a better father, husband.
God is in the business of something beautiful out what I feel is terrible.
God what are you doing in this? What are you doing in the meantime?
I CAN MAKE IT! GOD CAN BE ON DISPLAY.
God COULD give you a story to tell and an audience to tell it to.
God is not absent, apathetic, angry.
CONTENTMENT: Christ in you, empowering you.