Rabbit hole?

(10.12.21–Hidden Blessings –I Peter 4:7-19)

My friend, may I ask you a question? How often do we miss the blessings of success simply because we're distracted by things that get in the way?

My friend, Life’s a story, welcome to This Passing Day.

I'm M. Clifford Brunner.

Here at Beech Springs when we look out our back door there is nothing but Noname Creek and open fields. That's why when we have a bit of rotten fruit or vegetable that needs tossing, we simply fling open the back door, take aim for the field beyond and toss. By the next day our animal friends have disposed of everything; that is unless your aim is bad. A few days ago I took aim with a dried-up plum. I put my best two-finger fastball hold on it, wound up and delivered. Unfortunately, my index finger caught the top of the doorframe making my delivery low and wild. I nailed the outdoor thermometer hanging on a Beech tree no more than 10 feet from the door, knocked it off the tree and broke the plastic casement. Distracted by the pitch, I failed to take into account the obvious impasse of the doorframe.

Life that is. So often we miss the blessings of success simply because we're distracted by things that get in the way.

Here's a story: A man who had bought a new hunting dog was eager to see how he would perform. So he took him into the woods one day, hoping to track down and bag some really big game. No sooner had they gotten into the woods than the dog picked up the trail of a bear. Off he went, with the excited hunter close behind. Then the animal stopped suddenly, sniffed the ground, and headed down an altogether different path. He had caught the scent of a deer that had crossed the path of the bear. A few minutes later, the process repeated itself. The dog stopped, smelled the ground, and headed in still another direction. This time it was the scent of a rabbit that had crossed the path of the deer. And the poor pooch was sidetracked again. On and on it went, until the breathless hunter caught up with his dog – only to find him barking triumphantly down the hole of a field mouse. (Rubel Shelly)

It's easy to become distracted by life and lose a sense of where God's true blessings lie when we focus first on the action of doing as opposed to where that doing might be leading us. I really looked forward to flinging that plum; so much so that I failed to take into account the doorframe that stood in the way. Even though the fields beyond beckoned and my intention was good, I ended up distracted and barking down the wrong hole. Saddest of all, the same thing has destroyed many believers who started out with high resolve to honor Christ and do noble things with their lives, pursuing lofty goals. We wind up and try to deliver ourselves to Christ without first seeking in prayer and worship His blessings on those goals. In the end what started out as noble ends up rather foolishly. When you have a noble aim in mind remember this: check out the pathway to success first. An impulsive act may only lead you to a hole you had no intention to find.

We pray. Heavenly Father, it's easy to become distracted by life and lose a sense of where our true blessings lie when we focus first on the action of doing as opposed to where that doing might be leading us. We often start out with high resolve to honor Christ and do noble things with our lives, pursuing lofty goals. Forgive us Lord when we wind up and try to deliver ourselves to Christ without first seeking in prayer and worship His blessings on those goals. In the end what started out as noble, ends up rather foolishly. Help us Lord to always to remember this: we must check out the pathway to success first. An impulsive act may only lead us to a hole we had no intention to find. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!

Therefore my friend, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry for itself; each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matt 6:34) This Passing Day. May this passing day honor our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and be a blessing to you and everyone you meet. Find a stranger and say hello. Don't let another day pass without your day blessing someone else.

If you have a special prayer request, please send your request to ”This Passing Day!”

<thispassingday@gmail.com> From Beech Springs, God bless you for Jesus sake.

Rabbit hole?

(10.12.21–Hidden Blessings –I Peter 4:7-19)

My friend, may I ask you a question? How often do we miss the blessings of success simply because we're distracted by things that get in the way?

My friend, Life’s a story, welcome to This Passing Day.

I'm M. Clifford Brunner.

Here at Beech Springs when we look out our back door there is nothing but Noname Creek and open fields. That's why when we have a bit of rotten fruit or vegetable that needs tossing, we simply fling open the back door, take aim for the field beyond and toss. By the next day our animal friends have disposed of everything; that is unless your aim is bad. A few days ago I took aim with a dried-up plum. I put my best two-finger fastball hold on it, wound up and delivered. Unfortunately, my index finger caught the top of the doorframe making my delivery low and wild. I nailed the outdoor thermometer hanging on a Beech tree no more than 10 feet from the door, knocked it off the tree and broke the plastic casement. Distracted by the pitch, I failed to take into account the obvious impasse of the doorframe.

Life that is. So often we miss the blessings of success simply because we're distracted by things that get in the way.

Here's a story: A man who had bought a new hunting dog was eager to see how he would perform. So he took him into the woods one day, hoping to track down and bag some really big game. No sooner had they gotten into the woods than the dog picked up the trail of a bear. Off he went, with the excited hunter close behind. Then the animal stopped suddenly, sniffed the ground, and headed down an altogether different path. He had caught the scent of a deer that had crossed the path of the bear. A few minutes later, the process repeated itself. The dog stopped, smelled the ground, and headed in still another direction. This time it was the scent of a rabbit that had crossed the path of the deer. And the poor pooch was sidetracked again. On and on it went, until the breathless hunter caught up with his dog – only to find him barking triumphantly down the hole of a field mouse. (Rubel Shelly)

It's easy to become distracted by life and lose a sense of where God's true blessings lie when we focus first on the action of doing as opposed to where that doing might be leading us. I really looked forward to flinging that plum; so much so that I failed to take into account the doorframe that stood in the way. Even though the fields beyond beckoned and my intention was good, I ended up distracted and barking down the wrong hole. Saddest of all, the same thing has destroyed many believers who started out with high resolve to honor Christ and do noble things with their lives, pursuing lofty goals. We wind up and try to deliver ourselves to Christ without first seeking in prayer and worship His blessings on those goals. In the end what started out as noble ends up rather foolishly. When you have a noble aim in mind remember this: check out the pathway to success first. An impulsive act may only lead you to a hole you had no intention to find.

We pray. Heavenly Father, it's easy to become distracted by life and lose a sense of where our true blessings lie when we focus first on the action of doing as opposed to where that doing might be leading us. We often start out with high resolve to honor Christ and do noble things with our lives, pursuing lofty goals. Forgive us Lord when we wind up and try to deliver ourselves to Christ without first seeking in prayer and worship His blessings on those goals. In the end what started out as noble, ends up rather foolishly. Help us Lord to always to remember this: we must check out the pathway to success first. An impulsive act may only lead us to a hole we had no intention to find. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!

Therefore my friend, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry for itself; each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matt 6:34) This Passing Day. May this passing day honor our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and be a blessing to you and everyone you meet. Find a stranger and say hello. Don't let another day pass without your day blessing someone else.

If you have a special prayer request, please send your request to ”This Passing Day!”

<thispassingday@gmail.com> From Beech Springs, God bless you for Jesus sake.