DON'T STUMBLE OR BE A 'STUMBLER'!
For the month of August, each week our FF will be drawn from some of the early submissions that were done dating back to 2005/2006. The weekly FF was birthed as we were planning for a youth and young adult convention called Take it Back (TIB) which was held in Trinidad in 2006. Each Friday the participants were invited to join together and focus on the approaching event. I felt moved by God to continue the weekly FF and here we are now in 2010. IÂ’ve rewritten some making editorial changes since the FF now is no longer within the context of TIB.
Picture this: You're walking along freely with nothing in your way. Then out of what seems to be nowhere you STUMBLE over something that was dead centre in your track. Before you could do anything you see yourself in slow motion falling to the ground. But somehow you regain your balance quickly enough not to fall to the ground but to keep walking. ItÂ’s amazing just how quickly in our daily walk we can STUMBLE over things that come from seemingly out of nowhere.
Picture this: You're walking along freely with nothing in your way. Then out of what seems to be nowhere you STUMBLE over something that was dead centre in your track. Before you could do anything you see yourself in slow motion falling to the ground. But somehow you regain your balance quickly enough not to fall to the ground but to keep walking. ItÂ’s amazing just how quickly in our daily walk we can STUMBLE over things that come from seemingly out of nowhere.
In Matthew 16:23 Peter had just made a statement to Jesus to which Jesus replied, "Get behind me Satan! You are a STUMBLING block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." (NIV) Here's a simple truth - anything or anyone who causes you to STUMBLE as you walk on the path where God has called you to cannot be working for God but against God. That which causes you to STUMBLE in your faith walk must be seen as a tool of the enemy and as an act of Satan. Why? Because to STUMBLE is to stagger; it is to be tripped up; it is to fall or slip. I think that anybody who puts anything in your way that causes you to STUMBLE can be called a ‘STUMBLER’.
Anybody who is trying to live for Christ can expect that in his/her path the enemy will always put some ‘STUMBLERS’. Expect them and prepare ourselves for when the enemy sends them. It is not always easy though to immediately recognize who Satan uses to cause us to STUMBLE in our walk? We can readily expect Satan to use strangers or our enemies to be a STUMBLING block to God’s work in our lives. But can we identify the ‘STUMBLER’ when it is a close friend; do we know the ‘STUMBLER’ when it is a brother/sister in our congregation? Can we look in the face of a family member and see that the person is a ‘STUMBLER’?
Jesus knew immediately that Peter, the lead disciple, was being used by Satan as a ‘STUMBLER’. Peter was not Satan! But his words reflected Satan's agenda - not God's. Let’s recognize that the person whom the enemy may use to cause us to STUMBLE is not Satan. But if that person is very close to you it becomes even more difficult to discern that the person is being used as a ‘STUMBLER’. Let’s also realize that even well intended believers can at times serve as STUMBLING to you fulfilling God’s purpose. So pray for discernment.
Today, pause and look at the persons you consider your friends or acquaintances; those in your inner circle. Ask yourself, ‘do they cause me to STUMBLE as I'm seeking to fulfill God's purpose in my life?’; ‘do these persons have God's agenda as the primary driving force in their lives?’ But let’s look at ourselves too and ask ‘do I sometimes allow myself to be used as a ‘STUMBLER’? Watch out for ‘STUMBLERS’! And if you STUMBLE as you walk, remember who is the real source and cause of your STUMBLING. But like Peter, keep walking! So our FF for today is this DON’T STUMBLE OR BE A ‘STUMBLER’!
Mikie Roberts (Rev)
HereÂ’s the link for the blog. If you wish to, post a comment.
http://moravians.net/serendipity/index.php?/categories/1-Friday-Focus
Anybody who is trying to live for Christ can expect that in his/her path the enemy will always put some ‘STUMBLERS’. Expect them and prepare ourselves for when the enemy sends them. It is not always easy though to immediately recognize who Satan uses to cause us to STUMBLE in our walk? We can readily expect Satan to use strangers or our enemies to be a STUMBLING block to God’s work in our lives. But can we identify the ‘STUMBLER’ when it is a close friend; do we know the ‘STUMBLER’ when it is a brother/sister in our congregation? Can we look in the face of a family member and see that the person is a ‘STUMBLER’?
Jesus knew immediately that Peter, the lead disciple, was being used by Satan as a ‘STUMBLER’. Peter was not Satan! But his words reflected Satan's agenda - not God's. Let’s recognize that the person whom the enemy may use to cause us to STUMBLE is not Satan. But if that person is very close to you it becomes even more difficult to discern that the person is being used as a ‘STUMBLER’. Let’s also realize that even well intended believers can at times serve as STUMBLING to you fulfilling God’s purpose. So pray for discernment.
Today, pause and look at the persons you consider your friends or acquaintances; those in your inner circle. Ask yourself, ‘do they cause me to STUMBLE as I'm seeking to fulfill God's purpose in my life?’; ‘do these persons have God's agenda as the primary driving force in their lives?’ But let’s look at ourselves too and ask ‘do I sometimes allow myself to be used as a ‘STUMBLER’? Watch out for ‘STUMBLERS’! And if you STUMBLE as you walk, remember who is the real source and cause of your STUMBLING. But like Peter, keep walking! So our FF for today is this DON’T STUMBLE OR BE A ‘STUMBLER’!
Mikie Roberts (Rev)
HereÂ’s the link for the blog. If you wish to, post a comment.
http://moravians.net/serendipity/index.php?/categories/1-Friday-Focus
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