TOO MUCH TIME AND ENERGY PICKING UP THE PIECES…
Our life in Christ is a journey. And that journey is more like an excursion through life; it has victories and setbacks along with many wild and crazy turns. The value we place in the product of our journey will always determine our perspective within it. For it is our perspective that determines the manner in which we manage our life.
Some people take it very seriously and others, well not so serious. I, for one, am trying to smell the roses as I pass by, but what almost haunts me is the notion that I will stand before God one day and give account to all my actions – all that I produced or didn’t produce. And that brings me to a fearful sobriety.
I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a bit critical of myself. I consider myself as being very hardheaded. I know what I want but it seems like I keep making the same mistakes that prevent me from arriving at where I want to be. My desire is to learn, not just from my mistakes, but from others as well. Easier said than done…
I’m hardheaded. And one of the many attributes of “hard-headedness” is that hardheaded people live life failure to failure. Yeah, I know we all do that… but the difference is that hardheaded people spend too much time and energy picking up the pieces. And there is where the problem lies (at least for me).
The Lord said to the prophet Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king” (1 Samuel 16:1).
Well there is it… I must learn to break my hardheaded mind-set by quitting in trying to pick up the pieces, learning from the setback and filling my horn with oil, for God always has a new plan! For in Christ, failure is never final in His Grace and never fatal in His mercy. I’m think I beginning to learn this… Pray for me.
Pastor Manny
There are some failures in my life that I have let dictate my perspective on life. I too suffer with hardheadedness in trying to “fix” things that I’ve failed at. I need to get to a point where I don’t let my failures dictate my perspective on where it is I’m going in life.
I am also a bit hard headed, and a perfectionist. Often striving to fix things that are beyond broken instead of looking ahead at what God has for me. It has done nothing but waste time and cause heartache and frustration. God did not design us to continually go around the same mountain, but to go from victory to victory in Him.
Your second to last sentence is powerful. “For in Christ, failure is never final in His Grace and never fatal in His mercy.”
I needed to hear that!
Me, hardheaded… No lol.. Im so hardheaded that as I was being prayed for God used one of his servants to tell me stop being so hardheaded….. ouch, now that hurt. I have always done things my way since I was a kid, and that makes me set in my ways, I guess, but unfortunately my way isnt always right. Im also hard on myself to the point where God has to hit me on the head, and remind me to stop being so prideful. Any emotion good or negative that lingers to long on “Me” is pride. So, I need to learn to die..and that doesnt always feel good…Praying for you Pastor!!!
Isaiah43:18-19 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
Pastor I think God got almost all the hardheaded ones alltogether- cause I’m one of them too 🙁 cause when he changes us and use us the way He wants Beware!!! :)but I know that although we might not see change in our behavior(or even if we think we are getting worst!) He is really changing us in the inside but of course it depends on our willingness, obedience and faithfulness to Him if we’re gonna take longer to change…!
You and Pastor Victoria are a blessing in our lives! And I’m not saying this cause I want something from you I just wanted to say it from a long time ago cause you truly are!
Praying for you!!!
Failures….. I know about failures. When I fail, I feel like nothing matters but to fix it even though I really can’t do anything about it. I am learning to move on, but not forgetting where I came from. I want to be able to look back and see how far I have come, and i will continue to move on. Something I have to learn as well Pastor. I will pray for you and myself.
I think everybody has a bit of hard headedness, as for me I am very hard headed. I also tend to try to fix things by myself without God and it usually turns into more chaos. I had to learn to not be so hard headed and let God do what He needs to do in my life. Failures have a way of holding me back and I try to look at the positive side of things. What I have learned is that your failures give you wisdom.
A blog for us all, I’ll pray for you and us all.
Well Pastor I think that we are hard headed when we don’t see what the lord is doing inside of us. so we need to change the way we are. we just need to take time that we have to talk to the lord and let others know that we are here for them.
Wow, Hardheaded, that is really the middle name that I never received at birth. I can relate totally with you Pastor. I am constantly working on my OCD, controller, etc. You are not alone and I will pray for you in this area as the rest of us.
I think we always want to fix things. Place things back in order. Maybe it’s about letting it go and continuing on. You learn from it definitely but move on.
I am so hard headed when I am trying to solve an upsetting event. Funny thing i am
the one who lets me get so overwhelmed by the way I react up until now! All the years I have
wasted with these thoughts and reaction. But now I say, ” Let go and let GOD”!!!!!!!!
We most learn to move on and that for me is hard sometimes. When I fail at something I take it as if I fail forever and can’t move on. The reality is that a failure is just an opportunity for a great come back, so I most learn from my mistakes and move on.
So true. I guess many times we spent that much time trying to pick up all the pieces because that’s what we are used to do, that’s what we “know”. It is imperative to renew our minds and learn to not waste time trying to pick up the pieces but to move on and embrace the current situation.
Darn, after reading this I realize how hardheaded I am as well. 🙂 One of the many definitions of “hardheaded,” is “realistic”. Here is where I fail. Many times it becomes the number one enemy of faith. I too need prayer. lol
If glass is broke don’t pick it up and try to fix it. Start with something new.
Many of us are hardheaded, I was speaking with a teenager the other day and I used that cliche….”if only I knew then what I know now,” the thing is I too had the mindset of wanting to learn for myself rather than taking the advise of others. I’m realizing that others before me have had the experience, and so wisdom is learning from them and saving myself the time and consequences of making those same mistakes. Praying for you Pastor!
You know Pastor, I don’t think I have every heard that phrase before. “In Christ, failure is never final in His Grace and never fatal in His mercy.’ These lines speak volumes to me; expecially at this stage of my life. I’ll be keeping you in my prayer Sir. You are a Strong, anointed leader!!
I’ve noticed that I can waste time on things that don’t matter, time I could be using to move forward – I choose to stay and look at the pieces…Should you move on in all situations and not pick them up?
The way I see it, it’s kinda like the construction of a large building. If you miss something in the early stages like the foundation or something else important, you have to tear it down and rebuild. But before you can build you have too clean up the debris.
Wow! The statement, “For in Christ, failure is never final in His Grace and never fatal in His mercy” blessed me because like you, Pastor, I am critical of myself. The funny thing is that others see things that we don’t see and more importantly, God sees us through blood stained eyes. He sees the finished product and we must pray to see ourselves as He sees us.
Let’s keep moving!!!
Php 3:12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect, but I am pressing on, if I may lay hold of that for which I also was taken hold of by Christ Jesus.
Php 3:13 My brothers, I do not count myself to have taken possession, but one thing I do, forgetting the things behind and reaching forward to the things before,
Php 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Amen !!!
I’m so thankful for God’s never-ending grace and mercy that allows me to pick up the pieces and move on after making a mess of things…..and yes, Pastor, you are too critical of yourself…please give yourself a break…you are human and you will make mistakes just like all of us, but that’s why God made provision for our humanity.
Praying for you always!
Sometimes situations are under spirtualized, so we believe that pieces are there by accident, and for some reason need to put back together. You are right…it’s all about perspective, and then remembering that it’s all about perspective. So in each situation Matthew 11:29-30, and Matthew 6:31-32 should precede our thought process.
I think we spend a lot of time wallowing. When really we need to be like Mary at His instead of always trying to run around impressing people when what He really wants is for us to just relax, give Him our hearts and keep moving.
thank you. this scripture was a prophetic message sent though God at my church Jan.01-11