Being sick sucks. I don't remember ever faking it as a youngster, but I have fond memories of missing school and laying around in bed all day. Now when I'm sick, the lingering pain from a fever or an upset stomach that's been throwing up distracts me from the "ahh, time to rest" that laying around could bring. I even find myself stressing out, wishing I could will the sickness away so I could get back to work. Man, it's hard to accept things like this sometimes. Just that inner resistence to resting sometimes is hard. When I realize, 'You know what? There's nothing you can do about this. You have a fever of 101, just sit back and chill out. The work will be there when you return, blah blah blah.' That voice of reason is right, but it's not easy following it.
When reading over Genesis 49 and 50, one can see how Joseph's life and his responses to what life threw his way are inspiring. He explains how what his brothers meant for evil, God used for good. That's amazing. Another interesting thought to me is sometimes praying for others that are going through hard times. Can you imagine being one of Joseph's friends and prayer partners during his imprisonment time? Man, it'd be easy to imagine pleading with God for His justice to fall... Sometimes it's encouraging to let someone know you're praying for them. But I kinda like the idea of praying secretly for someone and really focusing on them and God helping them through their problems. I'm way too egocentric and selfish, so when I can break through that trap and let concern for others take priority, even if it's just for a few moments, that to me feels like I'm somehow acting the way God would want me to.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at October 29, 2004 12:13 PM