Two is better than one.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 
Two are better than one, 
because they have a good return for their labor: 
If either of them falls down, 
one can help the other up. 
But pity anyone who falls 
and has no one to help them up.

 

When I go hiking I love going with my family. The kids will run ahead and scream out the encouragements “Oh you got to come see this.”  or the occasional “Wohoo”, when they have made it up the hard part of the path. We will yell “Is it worth it” They scream back “Oh yeah come see.” Their encouragement helps me make it up the tough parts.  But it is my friend that walks with me that helps me through those tough parts, he is the reason I make it. He encourages, but more than that he warns me of rocks that I could trip on, cracks that I could fall in, and offers me a helping hand that pulls me up. He helps me get up when I am down.

In our spiritual life we too need someone to help us along. Not that we can’t do it by ourselves, but it makes the trail of life easier. Someone to encourage us to go on. But someone to warn us too. Someone one that says you know you should go talk to that person if they hurt you, or you know that is gossip you really shouldn’t spread that.  Someone who will be honest with you.  Someone who will pray with you when life is hard and you don’t think you can make it through. Someone who will pick you up when you have fallen away  and your not as close as you should be to God. 

Someone who labors together with you and that you trust not to tell you things that you want to hear, but what we need to hear.  A true co worker who wants to see the job done as much as you. Cause aren’t we all laboring together? Don’t we all want to see souls saved? Don’t we all want our brothers and sisters in Christ to make it to heaven with us?

If you have seen someone fall, your words of encouragement maybe the thing that helps them up. If you hear someone gossip, your words of corrections could help them not stumble and hurt someone else in the process. Your words of encouraging them to go talk to that one that has hurt them, instead of listening to them complain, could keep them from the pain of bitterness.

Proverbs 21:17 
As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

 

You can’t Sharpen yourself.

 

 

 

 

 

Consider the Ant.

 

So as we were hiking I had to sit for just alittle and catch my breath.  I looked over to see this Ant. He is working hard to get whatever he is carrying to his home.  He is focused on his goal and no matter how I wanted him to move he kept going undeterred.  The thing he was carrying was the same size as him,but that didn’t seem to slow him at all. I sat and stared as he crawled over obstacles and maneuvered his way to where he was going. He didn’t complain about his load he was carrying. He never acted like it was too much for him. Matter a fact he carried it with confidence and acted as if “I am made for this”.

 

So this verse pop into my head.

Proverbs 6:6                                                                                                                     Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

 

How many times does God put a task before me and I act as if I can’t  or this is too hard? Do I complain about what I have to do? How many times has that ant have to go back and pick up the same thing from a different area? Does he say to the other ants I already brought you one last week do you really need another? No  he probably repeats that same trip several times with no complaint. Do you think he see the end result of his goal? Do you think he ask why am I doing this? Or how does this benefit me? 

When God give you a task do it.  Consider the ant.  That ant will receive his reward during the winter when he can’t collect what he needs. Will you not receive your reward too? Whether it be crown in heave, winning someone to christ , or….. you name it. God tells us to consider the ant, because even he sees the ants hard work and the end there of. If he considers the ant such a small creature hard work, won’t he consider your hard work?

 

Things that come to me as I hike.

One More Step

Today as we hiked by Jordan’s Pond in Acadia National Park God kept speaking to my heart.

In our days of ministry Kevin and I have seen some hard times. Times that nobody would have thought us weak if we wanted to give up and just take on a secular job and just let this all go. There was times I would look at Kevin and say this hurts. I would ask God why? I would cry and feel as if I couldn’t do this no more. I would think I wasn’t strong enough I don’t have the skills to do this. I was right I wasn’t strong enough, but God was. I didn’t have the skills, but God did. I had to put it all in God’s hand and say I can’t but you can.  I got up each day and made the decision to stay the course to fight the good fight. It was a hard road.

I would look back and say I made it through this or thank you God thats over. And just when I thought it was getting smooth and I could handle this, BOOOM another challenge another problem, another choice to keep going.

Today as I climb I felt that same thing. The path would be easy and I thought I could do it then BOOM it would get hard and I wanted to turn around.  I can’t climb this I don’t have the skills WHY am I doing this. This hurts.  All this and God opened my eyes to my life. And I realized just take “one more step” keep going.

Each step brought me closer to my goal . Just like each decision we have made has brought us here now. Each step made me stronger to take the next one. And before this day I had never climb a mountain, but now I think I can climb another one.

Life isn’t easy no matter where God has you. It will be hard. But your goal is worth it. Just take one more step. Each step brings you closer.  God is calling you and I know you want to be at that Goal now, but you have to take the steps to get there. I couldn’t fly to the top of the mountain like superman, although that would have been cool, I had to take the steps to get there.  And each step made me stronger. Just like each trial prepares you for the next and makes you stronger. All to be able to handle the task that God has for you.

In life God will give you the support you need to make it to your goal. He will provide you with the truth and encouragement to help you make it up that mountain to your Goal. Focus  on that “one more step”. Kevin encouraged me and told me you can when I just knew I couldn’t .God has given me him to help me even in my spiritual walk to encourage me and I for him.  We will keep taking that “one more step” till we reach the goal that he has for us.