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Falling on Stones or
by Beth Fiedler Getting stoned. Over the centuries, the expression has morphed from misguided punishment which sent the disciple Stephen to his death (Acts 6:8 8:1) to one that emerged in the mid-Twentieth Century representative of an altered state induced by hallucinogenic or other drugs and idols. I am concerned about the type of stoning that appears in the Gospel of Matthew 21:44: "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder". The believers' choice should be obvious. Yet, we persistently fall to asheswounded, bloodied, and seemingly stripped of our capacity to respond. Why, because we do not cling to the cornerstone. We have moved so far from our point of reference that we cannot possibly stand in the face of harsh winds, bad weather, and disasters. Isolated and beaten to the ground, we scuff the boots of both those who walk towards the cornerstone and those who walk away. And yet we cling to this self while the stone grinds us to powder. Like the rich man, we are saddened to let go of our great possessions (Matthew 19:16-22) which are, in fact, just part of the illusion. We are not alone. The Lord promises it is possible (Matthew 19:26) and has shown us in Abraham to be true (Genesis 18:27): Then Abraham answered and said, "Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord". When your life plans are crushed--be bold. Speak to Him in prayer. He can "bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair" (Isaiah 61:3). Exchange the false euphoria for something eternal. Exchange the crushed ashes for something eternal. Exchange the false sense of self for something eternal. Fall on the cornerstone. Be broken. It is painful and no one wants to tell you that this change will be difficult. It will. But we are promised much more if we choose this path. "16 Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are see , but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Corinthians 4). Get up. Seek Him. Build on the rock. (Matthew 7:24-25). Copyright 2015 Beth Ann Fiedler32064 Beth Ann Fiedler, PhD is an independent author/researcher specializing in policy analysis with a great love of for short story writing. She draws her inspiration from biblical passages-the source of the power of God that within us. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |