Where to Begin

Some days it is so difficult to write. There are so many avenues that could be explored or that need to be explored. But where does one start? The thing most needed isn't always the thing most perceived as needed. Or to put it another way, people don't always know what they need.

We often think we have it all figured out. "Things," we tell ourselves, "have a way of working themselves out." We conclude that there is little we can do to alter the course of the events surrounding us, so we give in and go with the flow.

Or we become paralyzed with guilt for all the things we haven't done, so we don't move forward. We sink like a tea bag into the hot waters of regrets, and watch the colors of life bleed out. We lose our flavor, and feel worn out and used up.

We get trapped in traditions. Our effectiveness is narrowed by the parameters set for us by generation long gone. We favor the traditions of men over the Word of God. The refrain comes, "We have always done it this way." But, is it right, is it biblical. The message is still the same, but the way it is to be applied changes with each generation, for each generation faces unique challenges. But the Word remains true and unchanged.

The trick is learning to discover what are real needs are, and once we find them, learning how to meet them. The gospel does both. When we speak of the good news of Jesus Christ (that Jesus, the God-man lived a sinless life, died an atoning death, rose from the dead, and is now King over all), we not only expose the greatest need (redemption from sin), we expose the great solution (the sanctifying presence of the Holy Spirit). Jesus not only saves us from sin, he enables us to become all that he has purposed us to be.