I have a gathering sense that more of us are beginning to
make plans again. The last few years have deflated our sense of control over
outcomes but I’m finding myself around folks who are patching that hole and
re-inflating their future. But a smoldering ember of pessimism persists and we
have to snuff it out.
A few weeks ago I had the flu and some undistracted time
with God. I came away from that with a keen sense of His truth and absolute
nature and how He abhors masqueraders and hypocrisy. He is not relative nor
does He change with the “times”. He was and is and always will be. Everything
is relative to Him. Isn’t it good to know that He doesn’t change – that He’s
not a moving target?
In my supplications I asked God what interfered most with His progress through me for His purposes and He brought me to self examination and the exposure of petty sin in my life. What might seem inconsequential to you or even to me and certainly not imposing or hurtful toward anyone else, He revealed things in my life that impede His usefulness of me to His glory. The two words “suitable vessel” kept popping up.
I’ve quoted the words of Ian Thomas from his book, The
Saving Life of Christ (©1961, Zondervan, ISBN 0-310-33262-1) before and I’ll
quote them again, (p.13), ”Christ did
not die simply that you might be saved from a bad conscience or even to remove
the stain of past failure, but to “clear the decks” for divine action.”
Being convicted afresh I was nevertheless mindful of past failed
attempts to “throw down” those petty things in my life. Now a whisper suggested
a different approach – “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the
Lord.” (Zechariah 4:6). And so began a process of understanding that led to the
idea that I should give to God as my Christmas gift to Him those things He had
revealed to me that stood in the way of my being a suitable vessel for His work
through me. The Bible instructs me that God wants these things. His Son
willingly came and had poured on Him all of our transgressions so we might
become “suitable vessels”. And by the power of God He will take them and keep
them and I give them (bearing the desire of the temptations that will surely
come to recall them) with no desire to take them back. What true gift was ever
given that was ever taken back?
SO WHAT’S HOLDING US BACK?
Following a thread from a message from my Pastor I was
anxious to get to the bottom of a chronic problem that I see facing many
business leaders with whom I network; call it the “Victim Mentality”. It has to
do with that phenomenon I mentioned earlier about our deflated sense of control
over outcomes. I believe that this condition permeates our society and is the
motive for the rising and somewhat uncontrollable entitlement mentality that is
driving division in our nation.
I did a little research and found that there’s a whole lot
of stuff written about victimization syndrome and self-pity. Considering that
adjacent to all the lude placations, forms of sublimation and petty indulgences
being offered and succumbed to all about us I suppose it’s reasonable to
conclude that our nation suffers from an epidemic of self-pity and blaming. So
where do we go from there?
Helen Keller said this about self-pity; “Self pity is our
worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this
world.”
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