How Bad Does It Hurt?

Runners understand injuries. My friend, John hurt his knee and can no longer run. Another friend, Chris had a heart attack and the doctor told him he could walk for awhile, but he could go back to running.

Others are running with minor injuries, and hope that they will heal. Each injury must be treated, and the recovery time varies with the runner and the degree of the injury.

Employees sometimes get injuries on the job. They can be minor things like a turned ankle to broken bones. Or it could be an illness, from the flu to major cancer. The employee could miss time from just an hour to long term depending on the illness.

Students miss school or practice for teams due to sickness or injuries. Again the amount of time varies by the student, and the injury.

Students also miss time due to bad behavior, and the way they respond to the discipline.

Christians also have problems. Feelings get hurt by misunderstandings. Sometimes things are said the wrong way, and this causes pain. The mental pain can affect the individual more than some physical pains.

The result can cause the person to miss church or Christian fellowship. It takes time for the emotional wounds to heal, just as takes time for physical wounds to heal.

Some runners injuries, some job injuries, and some student injuries are caused sometimes by accidental actions, sometimes careless actions, and sometimes intentional actions. But the results still hurt, and have to be treated.

The same is true for the Christian life. And each wound needs to be treated, and allow time for the healing process.

In each of these cases, the individual must choose to follow the prescribed recommendations for the process to go the fastest and healing to take place.

The hurt is real. Physical and emotional pain are real. How bad it hurts emotionally affects how much you will follow the rules for the healing begin to get done.

Call The Doctor

My friend had a headache. The doctor did not say to take two aspirin and you will be fine. The doctor knew that the headache was just a symptom. It was not the problem. 

The doctor had to see him to solve the problem. They first take your blood pressure, and check your pulse. 

That is the basic starting point. Then the doctor asks lots of questions, and then run some tests to try to find what was causing the headache.

It was kind of like peeling an onion. You peel off layers to get down to the issue. You have to find the source, to fix the problem.

Life can be like that also. Something may be bothering you, and you do not act right. Mom or your friend know that you are upset about something. They know that you are not mad at them. That behavior is just the symptom of a problem inside.

Being positive, or thinking a good thought is nice, but it does not fix the problem. That is just stopping the symptom for a while.. 

They have to help you get down to the real problem. Sometimes it takes a counselor to help you find the answer.               

Your spiritual life is like that also. When you are not doing the things that you should be doing. That is a symptom of a problem inside. Then it may take a Biblical counselor to help you see the problem. 

They have to start with the basics also. First do you know Jesus as your personal Savior? That is step number one. Then you get into more details to find the answer.

Everybody has to see a doctor at some time in their life. Some put it off as long as possible. And that just lets the problem get bigger, and harder to deal with and fix.

The same is true with the problems in your life. The longer you wait the harder it is to face that person or issue. But you will face it sooner or later.

This is also true in your spiritual life. You will face God sometime. It is better to do it now and not wait.

It will just get harder, so do it today. 

WOW! What a Place!

This week there was a marathon in Dubuque, Iowa.  It was the Run 4 Troops, to honor the men that serve, or have served in the military.

The run was on a trail from Dyersburg, that used to be a train route, into Dubuque and the Mississippi river. Maybe you have ridden on a train, or seen pictures of a train ride across a country side.  It was a beautiful setting. The route was a zigzag along the water. In places, it was a  stream, in other areas it was a river with rocks and shoals.

In some places, they had cut through the rock to make the path level. You may have seen parts of this area in the movie, The Field of Dreams.

The farm for the setting was a couple of miles from the start of the marathon. 

The whole area had beautiful green yards, and lots of corn fields. The folks there took great pride in their yards, and homes.  Maybe you will get to visit this area sometime.

We live in a great country. God made a beautiful world. You can see His work from the beaches on the coasts, to the mountains across the country. The more you see of this world, the more you can see God's handywork.

Men have built some beautiful structures that you see in some big cities, but they seem small when you see all the magnificent things that God has made.

When you travel, you need to be sure and watch the scenery around you to see God's beautiful creation. Wow! What a place!

What is Love?

Do you have love?  Do you feel love?  How do you describe love?  Those are easy questions that are hard to answer.

Everybody would like to be loved and have somebody to love. Love is not a feeling or an emotion.

Love is a choice or a decision.

Love will cause feelings and emotions. When you care about someone, you care about their feelings.

You care about the things that happen to them.

The best example of love is when God loves you. It is not because of how good you are. He loves you even when you bad.  That shows true love.

It is much easier to love someone that is nice to you. It is much harder to love the unlovely or the one that is mean to you.

Some people believe that God could never love them because of what they have done.  But Jesus does love everybody.

So you must choose to receive His love, and forgiveness for your sin. Then you will know true love, and the joy and peace that comes after that.

What is your choice?  Everybody will make that choice.  Do it sooner, rather than later.

Graduation Season is Here!

Some are graduating from high school and others are graduating from college. It is a very important time in the  life of any individual.

As children, life was all about having fun. It was a time of learning, growing, and just playing and enjoying life.

Middle school and high school took more work, and taking on more responsibility. Choices became more serious and important.

It may have been things like playing ball, and deciding you did not like ball and trying something else. Or deciding you did like it, and becoming more intense in developing your skills. 

During this time parents, and teachers, and coaches, and church leaders were trying to give you information, and help you develop your interests and skills, and train you to take responsibility. All of this was to prepare you for real life and the challenges that you will face.

The NBA is having their graduation. Well the basketball season was the fun time for the players. The playoffs are  the real life. The first round seemed easy for most teams, as they did not have to work hard to sweep the poorer teams but the second round is like graduation. They have to get serious if they want to be successful.

Most teams have the talent to win. The difference becomes the desire and responsibility of the individuals to push to win. The coaches can try to prepare the players and challenge them to get out there and fight, but they must decide within themselves what they will do.

What will you do when you graduate? You have to make choices. Some choose college, while others start a career but that also takes training. In either case, it is an opportunity for you to use the talents and skills that you have learned.

Your success will depend on how much you listened and learned, and how serious you choose to be.

Some teams take several times before they win the championship. They failed, and learned from that failure.

Most people fail in one area before they find the right area for them. The victory comes from getting up from that failure, and learning, and continuing the battle. 

These principles are true in your family life, in your work life, and in your Christian life. 

So enjoy the graduation time. And then attack life, and give it your best shot. It will be an exciting time.