Daily Grit by Wes Thorp

Was the Apostle Paul near his breaking point while he was in the city of Corinth?

January 14, 2013

Sometimes I get the impression that the spiritual giants from the Bible like the Apostle Paul and Elijah were always up, never down and never struggled. I should know better. Right?

The weekend sermon from our church--Ada Bible Church--resonated with me because of its openness about how life can take you to the breaking point and how God can meet me in my time of extreme need.

It's the beginning of a multi-part series of sermons on The Resilient Life, on how to bounce back after feeling life you're at the breaking point.

My life has been pretty good and I've had more blessings than I can count. But there have been days where I couldn't always say that.

At the beginning of his sermon, he held a tree branch to demonstrate breaking. He bent it to the point of almost breaking. I have had times where I could identify with that.

I need to let the sermon marinade in my heart. I know that I'm not immune from hard times or severe challenges again. Perhaps, I'll run into somebody who is. I know that there are periods where I can be afraid of what's to come. The pastor shared Acts 18:9-10 where Jesus appears to Paul in a vision and tells him not to be afraid. Then Jesus tells him why.

Life can turn on a dime and I know that. I want to be ready.

We first watched the sermon at home during supper on Saturday through ustream.com and then again on Sunday.

I pray that God meets me as I meditate on this sermon.

Posted at 07:40 AM in Spiritual walk | Permalink | Comments (0)

Reading the news: Another shooting on Lansing's southside overnight

January 09, 2013

I just read this story on the WLNS.com website about a shooting on Lansing's southside where an occupant of one vehicle shot into another and wounded a 19-year-old.

It raises lots of questions about the current debate over gun control. How would tighter laws affect the ownership and use of guns by those who are the street shooters? They use illegal pistols to shoot in a variety of public settings, day and night.

If one was driving home a little after midnight and was near an event like the above, how would you protect yourself?

Posted at 07:52 AM in Lansing (MI) | Permalink | Comments (0)

Reading the news: A plan to downsize and reshape the city of Detroit

January 09, 2013

This is part of my effort to stay informed about what's happening in my city, state and around the country. I know that I need to be aware of what's happening in the world. It seems like there's an over abundance of information. Nevertheless, here's an item from my reading this morning:

Detroit Free Press story about the Detroit Works Long-Term Planning report which looks at how the city can be reshaped to make it more livable.

It involves the resettlement of wide-areas of people and the creation of farms and orchards inside the city. A total redesign is the target to deal with the vast stretches of the city that are vacant. It aimes to provide a way to make the city more manageable.

Are there other cities that have undergone the same kind of transformation? In this country and outside? How do the residents of the area react? How long does it take?

Posted at 07:39 AM in Michigan | Permalink | Comments (0)

Do you need a reminder today of God's faithfulness?

January 09, 2013

It's before 7 a.m. in the middle of the week and I added something new to my collection of vision challenges-migraines. It's the variety where I don't have the severe headache pain, but my vision goes through short periods of momentary fuzziness.

When this started over the weekend, I could feel my gut tighten up, not knowing where it would stop and not knowing how this would affect my daily life.

Everything seems back to normal and God-willing, it will stay that way, but what about the future. I ran into a Sara Groves song this morning that's a potent reminder that God is faithful. His hand is in mine. Do you need a reminder today? Check out this YouTube video.

By the way, I was tipped off to this song, by our church's daily Beyond The Weekend devotions which reinforce the previous Sunday's sermon. Thanks to Ada Bible Church for doing this. I needed to hear it this morning.