Family Pages
Sherwood arrived home after his baseball practice and found his mom in the backyard tending to her garden. He dropped his ball, glove, and bat and walked up to her and said, “I’ll never understand grown-ups. Why don’t you talk in a way that younger dragons can out what ‘ego problems’ meant. Now here you grownups go again!” “I’m talking about whatever ‘measure up’ means,” he said. “To-
day, after school, at baseball practice, I heard two coaches over at the dugout talking about one of the other boys. They said he’s a nice enough young man, but he just doesn’t measure up. That’s sad because he tries hard, and his parents are supportive.” He told mom that he had spent the rest of the practice trying
coaches how to measure his teammate. He had thought of every measurement to look at things, and he couldn’t come up with any- thing that might work. Mom said, “You are right about grown-ups and their sayings. That’s because it’s not that kind of measurement. As a matter of fact, it isn’t a measurement at all. It’s really a way to judge someone. It’s a way to say that the person doesn’t do as well as you think he
or she ought to do. It’s really a terrible thing because you can’t know what is going on in other people’s lives that could affect them. It could be sickness, something wrong with their parents, a family problem, or anything bad.” “Mmmm, that doesn’t sound good.” Sherwood said, “Because only God knows what is going on in everybody’s life!” “That’s right,” Mom said, and only God should be judging people. Only God has the responsibility to make decisions about
whether someone is doing as well as they can or not, and then God can show them the way to get to what they ought to be when they study His Word.
Facing Giants Facing Giants By Mary Drew Bult with Illustrations by Anna Campbell Bult
Read the story of David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17). Life is full of obstacles. Some are larger than others, but many – from a human perspective – seem impossible to
an unfortunate injury must heal before he can play the sport he loves. A mother who faces a dangerous disease real- izes she cannot successfully care for both herself and her family at once. Though every story is unique, every person faces obstacles of some sort – obstacles which can resemble undefeatable giants. Is there any way to conquer our most intimidating obstacles? This feat may be impossible for man, but it is certainly possible for God, who specializes in underdog-victory stories.
If you strive to live your life for God, obeying His Word and following His leading, you need not fear when you face an obstacle. God is with you just as He was with His servant David when David fought Goliath the Philistine. God will pro- vide you with the strength and the tools you need to face your own giants – no matter how large those giants may seem. Though you may not fully understand why your sovereign Father allowed an obstacle to block your path or how exactly He intends to help you defeat it, you can trust that He has a perfect plan and that He will somehow use this obstacle to shape you into the person He wants you to become. Ultimately, God allows you to battle obstacles because He loves you endlessly. He desires to work through you to bring about your good and His glory. Trust Him. Ask Him to show you what He wants you to do, and He will guide your actions in your time of greatest trial. Remember, your obstacle may not vanish quickly. That may not be God’s plan. Obstacles can take months, years, or even a lifetime to fully overcome. In the end God will always win, for He has already conquered the greatest obstacles of all, sin and death, through the power of His own Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus gave His own life to become the ultimate giant-killer and then rose from the grave, securing the victory which you and I could not secure on our own. Ponder this verse whenever you feel dis- couraged: “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33b, ESV). Jesus you just as He was with David long ago. With Jesus on your side, you can face the world’s most intimidating giants.
16 The Associate Reformed Presbyterian
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
