“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV).
It sure has been hot this summer! I read in the news that the 90 to 100 degree highs in June were record setting for the Eastern US. Heat this constant and high is hard to endure. Thank the Lord for air conditioning!
Speaking of A/C, both of my old but paid-for vehicles lost theirs during June. I had to spend my entire “Dave” emergency fund!
The auto repair man said, “Yeah, it’s your compressor, Mr. Combs. It’s shot.”
“It’s not my compressor.” I answered. “That’s the Lord’s compressor. It’s His car.”
“Well, whoever it belongs to, it sure is gonna be hot without air!” He responded with an odd questioning expression on his face.
“Fix it.” I said, as I mumbled a prayer to the Lord about how His cars were in need of replacement.
It’s easy to lose focus during a heat wave. There’s a kind of fatigue that affects both mind and body. It causes fuzzy thinking and fuzzy decision making. Sometimes, it makes you want to quit.
But Jesus stayed focused when He faced the cross. He looked past it to the goal which was our redemption. When we face hard times and heat waves, we can “fix our eyes” on Jesus. We can stay focused on Him. The One who endured will give us endurance. One of the ways that I practice the presence of Christ in my life is to remind myself (and auto repairmen) that everything belongs to God. Recognizing God’s ownership and control helps me to endure.
When I returned to pick up my second repaired vehicle in two weeks, I told the repairman that as much as I enjoyed seeing him again, I hoped it would be a while before my next visit. For some reason, he just opened up to me and started talking about his family and his life. He twisted his computer screen around and showed me photos of his daughters on his facebook profile.
“Hey, can I “friend” you?” I asked.
“Sure.” He replied.
“Cool.” I said, as I told him about our church and how great it would be for him, his wife and his beautiful daughters. “I’ll send you some links to our church website and some great info on parenting. You really ought to come check us out.” I continued.
“Great, I’ll try and come this Sunday!” He said, with a smile beaming on his face.
“I’ll be looking for you.” I replied, as I walked out onto the sun-baked asphalt, started my old Ford and cranked up the air. Adjusting the rearview mirror, I noticed my sweaty brow and something else…
I was smiling.
Good going Pastor…. Anytime you can leave the repair shop with a smile on your face is truly a blessing. People who go to have service done, are already having a problem. It seems that is all the service tech experiences, “What is your problem, sir?” You’d think sometimes a customer would just come by and say, “How ya doing?” Sounds like you hit a service dept. “home run”, Gary.