Playing Your Role in the Story of Life on this Planet

Playing Your Part in the Story of Life on Earth

Barbara Henderson

The Bible tells us a story of a mighty and righteous king named Uzziah. (2 Chronicles 26)

He was made king at age sixteen and ruled for fifty-two years.  Uzziah started out doing what was right in the sight of the Lord.  He sought the Lord in days of Zechariah who was a man of God.  The Bible tells us that as long Uzziah sought the Lord the Lord made him to prosper.  It tells us of the deeds and battles he fought successfully.  He had an amazing career seldom matched throughout all of history.  But then……

With all Uzziah’s successes you would think he would have never wavered from following God Almighty with his whole heart.  But verse 16 tells us one of the saddest stories ever told.  It says,

     ‘But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the Lord his God, and went into the temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the altar of incense.’

Uzziah’s story should have ended in triumph, but it ended in disaster when he overstepped his boundaries and usurped the authority of God’s priests.  This was not done without severe consequences to Uzziah.  He became a leper.  He was cursed with leprosy until he died. 

A very interesting story here is that Uzziah sought the Lord in the days of Zechariah.  This is a key element when applying Bible teachings to personal actions.  This story is about Uzziah, but the star of the story, the godly guiding influence, was Zechariah.  We don’t know if Uzziah would have done well as long as he did without Zechariah’s influence.  I’m sure personal pride played a factor in his downfall, but apparently there was no godly mentor to step into Zechariah’s shoes after he died.  Zechariah’s story was just a part of Uzziah’s story.  Zechariah touched many other people while he lived his own life, and I am sure his influence ranged from great to small in those he touched.  And that is how each of us today live our own life.  We are influenced by some to a great extent, by some to a small extent, and we influence others to some extent.

Each of us, no matter how large a real-life role we play, is just a little part of the big story.  This brings us to the that old saying, ‘There are no small parts, just small actors.’ In watching movies and television I have often noticed that the so-called star of the show should have been someone other than the one getting top billing and the big bucks.  In the Biblical story of Uzziah Uzziah plays the role of a mighty king with one godly adviser – Zechariah.  When Zechariah was no longer there Uzziah became puffed up and forgot God. 

We all want to be careful to do right and follow wise counsel all the days of our life.  I am sure you have all noticed the recent passing of the Reverend Billy Graham.   I know he was controversial to many regarding his message.  Was he conservative enough when preaching the gospel?  Did he waver to far left in his message?  My personal opinion is that he was a mighty of man of God fully dedicated to reaching the world with good news of Jesus Christ.  I thank the Lord for the man’s long life and dedication. I think the world is a lesser place with the loss of every believer. 

My dad was a praying man.  My father in law was a fine example of Christian behavior.  When they passed the world lost two Christians.  They touched many people in their lives.  Some more than others.  And, that is how the rest of us live our lives.  While living our own story, we touch some people deeply and others just in passing. 

Take a few minutes to consider your own life. I can tell you that people are being influenced by you today either for good or bad.  Some are influenced deeply, and others just barely.  You can’t live your life in a way that doesn’t influence people.  I would guess that Zechariah was a mighty influence in Uzziah’s life. 

It is a fact that you influence others.  You are that important.  But even more important than the influence you have on others is the life you live for yourself.  Uzziah failed miserably when his influential person died.  Or, you could look at it as seeing that pride got the better of him.  Another Bible character who ended up a miserable failure was King Saul.  He, like Uzziah, took the office of priest instead of waiting for Samuel.  King David messed up the last part of his life by committing adultery and murder!  From these three examples you could wonder if everyone who starts out well winds up messing up their life later in their years.  I can assure you that is not the case.  Let’s look at some more Bible examples.

Think of Joseph.  He was sold as a slave by his own brothers, thrown into prison, and wound up second in command to all of Egypt.  The Bible does not tell us of any slip ups on Joseph’s part.  He was faithful to God all his life. 

I love the story of Samuel the prophet.  What a guy.  He went to live with the priest Eli in a terribly corrupt environment when he was only a very small boy.  We are never told of any wavering on his part in his faithfulness to God.

Then there is Daniel and the three Hebrew brothers.  They were taken as captives from their homeland as youths and thrown into the pagan court of Babylon.  They faced terrible tests and yet remained faithful to God.

Faithfulness to God is a choice.  Circumstances may make the choice a little more complicated.  I believe the first three people mentioned (Uzziah, Saul, and David) let Pride get in their way.  On the other hand, Joseph, Samuel, and Daniel avoided letting pride elevate them above the station the Lord had them in. 

So, let’s say you are someone who is not playing a big part in the story of world history.  The actual truth is you really don’t know how big a part you are playing.  Maybe Zechariah didn’t know what an influence he was on Uzziah.  Maybe he was just doing what he knew to be right.  Maybe you don’t know what an influence you are on those around you.  You are just doing what you know to be right with diligence.  The only thing we can know for certain is that it is very important that we do what is right on a daily basis.  Be careful that pride or boredom or greed or impatience doesn’t lead you down a path you will find painful a little farther down the road.  Billy Graham didn’t make it to almost 100 years old without a scandal in his ministry by accident.  He placed a great value on his faith and reputation.  Christians should do the same whether we are in a place of great importance or making tuna sandwiches on a cafeteria line.

BUT, what if you are a person who hasn’t started out that well in life?  Maybe you have already made some serious mistakes in your life.  Maybe it seems that your only influence on others has been on the side of wrong.  The Bible has an example for you also.  Let’s look at Saul of Tarsus.  He was a persecuter and murderer of Christians.  But God saved his soul and Saul became Paul the Apostle.

Paul did not make up for the evil he had done by turning to Christ and suddenly doing good.  Paul was forgiven for his sins by Christ just like all saved people.  Because Paul was saved he began to do good works.  His works showed evidence of his salvation.

God has work for us to do whatever age and whatever place we find ourselves.  Whether we are like Joseph and have been faithful, or like David and have found ourselves neck deep in sin, as long as we live our part of history is not all written down yet. 

If you were forced to take a look at your own life and put yourself in one of the following categories what would it be?

More like Joseph and Daniel so far – faithful without any big slip ups. (little slip ups quickly grow into big slip ups without immediate corrections)

More like David and Uzziah – good start but big sin in the middle.

More like Paul/Saul – late start but so far so good.

The truth is what really matters is today.  What are you doing with the days of life you have left?  Are you someone who applies Bible teaching to personal actions in a consistent manner?  The biggest help you can give yourself in living a life that is faithful to the Lord is to study His Word. 

In first Timothy Paul admonished Timothy to be faithful. 

     ‘¹⁷ Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

¹⁸ This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare;

¹⁹ Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:

²⁰ Of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander; whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme.’

Pay close attention to verse 19.  Those who did not keep a good conscience were made shipwreck.  I would guess some people who have stepped outside the bounds of proper Christian behavior would say ‘shipwreck’ is an apt way describe what is left of their lives.  Pay attention to your actions.  Small sins can quickly turn into big sins. 

You are writing your life story in how you live each and every day.  My dear friends, be so careful to remain faithful to the teachings of Christ. Play the part you are given each day like you are auditioning for the starring role in a major big screen production.

Dear PZ Insiders,

I have an important appointment on Monday March 12 at Swedish Hospital in Seattle.  IF I qualify for surgery it will be a newer way to treat advanced ovarian cancer – major surgery and then aggressive chemo.  If not, we are not sure what my options are.  My ND (naturopath) has me on several things that can possibly control or slow the cancer.  I am praying these work. 

To those who don’t know, I had major abdominal surgery in October for bowel blockage due to excessive scarring from other surgeries.  I am just now getting over that, so I am not looking forward to more surgery. 

It is in the Lord’s hands.  Please pray for me.

The Lord bless each of you and answer all your prayers.

Barbara

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Dear Readers,

Thank you for reading my articles.  I hope they are helpful.  

You may send me an email at tosergeant@gmail.com

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The Lord bless you and answer all your prayers.

Barbara

 

Living in an Upside Down World

As The World Turns…….Upside Down!

Barbara Henderson

Today there are a sad number of people who find themselves deep in debt.  They owe more money on a house or car than the value of their property.  These loans used to be called underwater loans, but now they are called upside down.  If a person simply sticks to making payments they will eventually overcome their problem and have more value in their property than the amount owed.  Their loan will no longer be underwater or upside down.  I wish the rest of the world problems could be solved so easily.

In a different area, we seem to be watching the world go under water or turn upside down.  Right is called wrong, and wrong is called right.  I know some people in the leftist/collectivist group know the difference, but they don’t care.  They want power, and manipulating the emotional addicts of the world is a simple way to get it.  It is horrifying to watch people protesting behavior that they see as wrong, when it is entirely right behavior.  They are condoning extreme violence.  They don’t seem to have any real goals in mind.  They are just expressing their anger at actions they don’t like.  Or, they are being paid to protest.  What a mess.

How we got in this mess is no real secret.  People have rejected the God of the Bible and the only real Truth found there. First it was only part of the truth.  Then more of the truth, and now there is a large segment of the population that has no concept of truth.  Without the truth they are lost in a sea of shifting sand.  They have no peace or contentment.  They live in a world of uncertainty and turmoil.

I do feel very sorry for them, but I also consider how we are supposed to live safely in this world, do what is required of us, and still preach the truth of Jesus Christ.  The world is not safe anywhere for anyone!  We have watched the tide turning to insanity for decades, but now it seems to have snowballed to such a speed that one wonders if the level of insanity might reach such a weight that it could knock the earth off its axis – figuratively speaking of course.  Civilization as we know it is in serious danger of being lost to the insanity of today’s emotionally addicted leftists.

I know I have covered this before, but emotionalism is an addiction just like alcohol or drugs.  Those addicted to emotions always need more, and doing more of what gives them the high is what is required to feed the addiction.  It appears that right now more and more people are addicted to anger. The addicts go out and riot for some unknown reason, or for pay.  But in the end, their emotions run their lives.  I saw a video of people who had pulled down a statue of Robert E. Lee.  They were kicking what looked like a bronze statue.  They would go aback and kick it again.  I seriously don’t see how they were even walking. But their anger was pushing them onward.  They are sick to the point of insanity. They are a growing danger and threat to people who don’t agree with them.

I am100% in favor of personal self-defense.  I do believe these anger addicts will definitely need more to feed their anger addiction.  They will turn against those who don’t agree with them.  Violence is probably coming.  I don’t see any way that it won’t come.

So, what are Christians supposed to do?  We are to stay focused on our prime duty, which is to act like the Christians we claim to be.

That is easier to do if we look at these lunatics for what they are.  They are lost people headed for hell.  Some may claim to know Jesus Christ, but it is obvious they are not worshipping the Jesus Christ of the Bible, but rather an imaginary Jesus made in their own image.  We will not be able to avoid offending them if we tell the truth, so don’t even spend time trying. 

One problem is that there is a natural reaction to be angry at these people.  They are trying to turn our world into a place where no one honors God Almighty, and everyone belongs to some giant collective where everyone thinks and speaks alike.  Honestly, they probably haven’t even thought it out that far ahead.  Their anger leads to hate, and they choose to continue hating.   In choosing hate over surrender to God they have rejected God’s gift of a sound mind.  But, instead of being angry at them it is better to forgive them.  From the vantage point of forgiveness we can see the world far more clearly.  Our example Jesus Christ forgave those who crucified Him.  He didn’t respond in anger to what anyone did to Him.  He was angry at those who blasphemed God like the money changers in the temple courtyard.  Our duty is to forgive these people because they (for the most part) have no idea of what they are doing.  That doesn’t mean we enable them, or overlook their wrong thinking, or in any way condone their actions.  It just means we are supposed to forgive them.

It is so difficult to watch people who think they are superior to everyone who doesn’t agree with them, especially when you know they are basically insane.  So, we have two major items that cause us to be angry with them.  They think they are better than Christians and conservatives, and they think they are more intelligent.  Grrrr……

And then there is the fear factor.  We don’t know how far God will let this go before He steps in to make some changes!  I don’t mean all Christians are living in fear of the future, but it would be somewhat ignorant to not be thinking about what changes the future may bring.  And regardless of what the delusional crowd believes, the changes will not bring about equality or a better world. If the Lord delays His return what does the future hold for our children and grandchildren?  A world led by lunatics cannot be a fair world or a world where Christians are even tolerated.   We know the current lunacy will ultimately lead to the one world government that allows the Antichrist to come into power.  We are concerned for our own future but also concerned for those who are trapped in stupidity right now.  They are like people who stand on the sea shore watching a tidal wave come in and never make an effort to move to safety. 

So, regardless of what harm their actions may bring to our country, the world, and individual Christians, we need to forgive them.  We need to tell them about Jesus.

Now, you may be wondering exactly how you are supposed to forgive politicians who continually fight for money to torture and murder unborn babies.  Or maybe they have allowed your job to be taken by a foreigner right here in your own country.  Or, maybe even someone here illegally has taken your job.  Or maybe your once lovely city has been taken over by leftists who openly support and condone every sin named in the Bible.  And it really is infuriating how politicians spend money on absolutely useless projects in an attempt to engineer society into the image they want.  I especially find it upsetting when cities spend billions and tirelessly try to force people to use mass transit instead of doing anything to improve city traffic flow. (Seattle comes to mind there)  If there is a new way to misspend and waste money leftist politicians will find it.

But, this isn’t about how dreadful society is or how fast it is going farther into the sewer.  This about forgiving them!  They don’t deserve it, but then no one deserves forgiveness.  To begin to have any influence in pointing people to Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life, we have to see these people as people in need of the Savior.  This is more than difficult.  This is impossible.  We have to go to Jesus and ask Him to help us to forgive.  Or, surrender our feelings to Him, and let Him work in us.  The first thing that we will be required to do is pray for the wicked.  That is the way I put it when I pray. I ask the Lord to turn the wicked from evil to good.  I also ask Him to stop the wicked who won’t turn and to let their evil plans to come to nothing.  We have to remember that all these people are God’s creation.  He loves them.  God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.  It is like praying for a friend’s wayward spouse.  The spouse doesn’t deserve your prayers, but because of your friend you will pray for the wayward spouse.  Love of Jesus Christ will compel you to forgive these lunatics and to pray for the them.

Prayer and forgiveness is the path that leads to a better future.  No matter what society or civilization does, the hearts of Christians can prosper through obedience to our Almighty God.  The downward spiral of civilization is not going to be halted unless the Lord halts it.  Regardless, God’s children are still the tools He uses to reach out to the lost.  It is very difficult to reach someone for the Lord unless we have a proper view of them.  That means we must set aside their actions and see them for what they are – people utterly lost and headed for eternal damnation.  Seriously, no one actually has to go to a foreign mission field because we are living in the middle of a mission field.  Looking at the past election it appears that at least half of America is lost. 

An aside is that anyone who is called to a specific mission field should follow the Lords leading; however, if you have no specific calling it would seem that the Lord has a job for you right where you are. As you are faithful to tell others about the real Jesus Christ the Lord may give you a specific place He wants you to go.  But obedience will always be the key where ever you are.

Something very comforting is that the Lord’s plans will never be turned upside down.  We know from reading the Bible that terrible times will come.  The Lord is with His children no matter what happens physically, environmentally, nationally, or socially.  The Lord is in charge.

Barbara Henderson

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What do you Personally Take Seriously?

What Do You Take Seriously?

Barbara Henderson

Getting up in the morning seems to require caffeine.  I take that seriously.   I am not a coffee drinker, but I must have that cup of tea.  Then I must also have a second and a third cup of tea.  If I am in the mood I will drink it all day. I take it seriously that I must also have fresh water to make the tea.  I also need a nice biscuit with possibly a slice of ham to go with my first cup of morning tea.  I am serious.  If I don’t get caffeine and food I will have a headache and possibly be grumpy.  Actually, I am seldom grumpy.  I will just be droopy and unable to do much of anything.  If I want to get anything done in a day I MUST take my morning caffeine seriously!

Of course people joke about their morning drink.  Most people have something specific they begin the day eating and drinking.  Those who don’t have a morning routine probably don’t get much done most days. There are things far more important than morning drinks and favorite foods.  There are rules by which we live.

I take my marriage seriously.  I take my family seriously.  I take my friends seriously.  All these things require commitment.  I do have to pay attention to what is happening and do my best to be a helpful part of what is going on with those I love.

The danger zone is when it all becomes routine.  Maybe we forget just how serious life is.  I don’t mean we shouldn’t joke around or have any fun.  But in the midst of whatever is happening on a daily basis, there is still the seriousness of making sure we are there for those we love. 

The starting point for dealing properly with the things we take seriously is to take God seriously. No one can be the best they can be without putting God first.  Putting God first covers a lot of territory.  You can boil it down to simply having a reverent awe of God and making a careful effort to be obedient to His teachings as revealed in His written word.  That is absolutely the best thing you can possibly do for your loved ones. 

Every single human being is separated from Almighty God because God is utterly continually perfect and we are not.  The first thing everyone needs to take seriously is to make peace with God.  He has given us simple instructions on how that is done.  Go to God the Father through Christ the Son.  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. 

Once someone makes peace with God, that person starts out on a new life.  That life is supposed to be a life lived in obedience to God’s instructions.  It is a given that no one actually pulls that off perfectly, but it is also a given that true believers do take obedience very seriously.  They do not belong to a crowd that feels entitled to sin because they know God will forgive them.  Actually, continuing in sin gets true believers into more trouble than non-believers.  God is a loving father.  He isn’t going to allow His children to act like heathens without taking them to task.

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