Mike Browning

Tag: Faith and Work

  • Ready or Not, Here Comes the Sun

    Ready or Not, Here Comes the Sun

    We don’t always want to, but things tend to work better if we keep pushing forward.

    Earlier this week I had one of those mornings.

    I got up and my daughter’s car would not start. I immediately assumed it was going to be something expensive. At the same time, it was time to take my other daughter to buy her college books.

    I knew both things were coming. The car had a few issues that needed attention, but nothing urgent, so I had been putting it off. Same with the books. None of it was a surprise. But when it all landed at once, it felt like it was put right in my face.

    On top of that, I was busy at work.

    I felt pinched for time. I felt pinched for money. You know how that goes.

    I thought I was going to have to deal with all of it at once. Then it turned out the car problem I thought was major was not a major issue at all. It cost me zero dollars to fix.

    And instead of the school books being around six hundred dollars, they came in at a little over two hundred.

    So it turned out pretty good. Especially considering I got to spend a couple of hours with my daughter going to the college bookstore.

    It reminded me of something I have told my kids before when they feel overwhelmed or upset because things are not going right. I ask them how many times they have felt like they were not going to make it.

    Then I ask them to compare that with the number of times they actually did not make it.

    Which is zero.

    You just have to keep going.

    The sun will come up tomorrow. Most times, things improve. Some things even turn out better than you expect. That’s what happened to me.

    We tend to forget about those moments faster than the bad ones. That’s just how people are.

    None of this means you never stop, reassess, or change course. Sometimes getting smacked in the face is a sign you need to do one of those things.

    But minor adversity is not a reason to curl up into a ball.

    God has you. God knows what you need. He knows better than you do.

    Just keep going like it’s going to work out. Partly because that’s often the most productive thing you can do. Mainly because it usually does work out.

    You just don’t see it yet.

    PS- I run another site that offers a simple weekly reading plan to help you read through the Bible in a year.

    It just started, so you could begin at the beginning and catch up without much trouble. Or you can jump in where we are. The plan repeats every year, so you will get it all either way.

    There’s nothing to buy.
    Nothing to pay.
    No analysis.
    No commentary.
    No pressure.

    You just read, on your own, and let it meet you where you are.

    If you want the weekly readings emailed to you, you can sign up.
    If not, you can just check the site.

    Up to you.

    It’s here:

    HisWordTogether.com

  • Just Do What God Puts In Front of You

    Just Do What God Puts In Front of You

    You don’t need to save mankind — that’s already been done.

    Naaman was a Syrian general who had leprosy. He went to Elisha’s house expecting a grand miracle, but Elisha didn’t even come outside. He just sent a messenger telling Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan River.

    Naaman was insulted. The Jordan was muddy, and he thought the command was beneath him. But his servants reasoned with him: “If the prophet had asked you to do something hard, you would have done it. Why not this simple thing?”

    Naaman humbled himself, did as he was told, and was healed.

    His pride almost kept him from it.

    There’s a bit of Naaman in all of us.

    We want to do good, solve problems, make an impact. But instead of doing the small things God puts in our path, we chase something big — something that might get us recognition.

    See a hungry family on the street? You could hand them a meal.

    Or you could decide to start a food pantry.

    One looks “bigger,” but which one do you think God cares about in that moment?

    We can’t see the whole picture or connect all of God’s dots. The one simple thing we dismiss may matter more than the results of our big plans.

    A kind word, given at just the right time, might keep someone from a disastrous choice. You may never know all the future effects as they extend past your life here.

    But we don’t need to see the future to do the right thing now.

    The short-term results might not look like much, and if something happens far in the future it won’t be tied back to what you did today.

    So nobody celebrates.

    Maybe that’s the real problem — we want the pat on the back more than we want to obey God.

    But God celebrates when we obey.

    Remember the widow who put two pennies in the Temple box?

    Jesus said she gave more than all the people giving large amounts for show.

    The big job — saving the world — is finished. What God asks is smaller: just do what He puts in front of you. If we all did that, the world would look very different.

    Naaman found healing in obedience. We might also.

    PS – Last week I talked about how it might be a good idea to get a physical copy (or copies) of the Bible if you don’t already have one. Reading electronically is great, but there’s no guarantee it will always be available. It can be turned off with the flick of a switch.

    Is it likely? Who knows. Is it possible? Certainly.

    Is there any downside to having a hard copy of the most important book ever written?

    You can buy one here on Amazon.

    Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. That means if you buy something — anything — after clicking that link, I may receive a small commission. It doesn’t change your price.