Slow down... my lesson from the ant
Isn't it wonderful to learn something and be able to apply what you have learned immediately? Today we attended the Flamingo Road Church in Doral. Wonderful church. Wonderful 
people. Very dynamic. The pastor started a series called Antology - Lessons from the Ant. It was a very practical sermon, one that you can learn from a lot. One of the things that stuck to my mind somehow, was when Pastor Troy related an incident that happened to him in the department store. A lady cut him of the line towards the cashier. This lady was irate and was very aggressive towards the sales people in the counter. He could have reacted to that situation in many ways, but he slowed down and asked himself 3 questions: WHAT just happened? WHY is this happening? WHAT can I learn from this situation? I don't know why this stuck in my mind, but it must have been the Holy Spirit. Little did I know that I would be needing that lesson very, very soon!
After church, Joe and I proceeded to The Falls mall. My hubby wanted to drop by the Apple Store and maybe, watch the movie, Borne Ultimatum. Now mind you, this was something sponetaneous and impulsive on our part. But it seemed like a good idea at that time so off we went. Unfortunately, we were more than an hour early for the next movie showing, so we decided to just stick around and window shop....We stopped by a couple of stores, including our favorites, Restoration Hardware and Williams Sonoma.. I tell you, both places ares like candy stores to me.
At Williams Sonoma, I got lost in looking at the kitchen gadgets. I stopped by their recipe book displays and looked at a few, like Giada's (one of my faves). I
got excited at something that I saw in her book that I wanted Joe to see it, so I turned around to go to him, who wandered a few feet from me looking at some kitchen equipments. But there were 4 younger people right behind me who were talking, and when I passed by them, I accidentally hit one of the girls on the shoulder with the book I had in my hand. It wasn't very hard, just a little nudge. And of course, I apologized and went on. But when I passed by the guy who was with that lady (probably a boyfriend), I heard him say "stupid!"....... Now, that wasn't very nice to hear, wasn't it?
My flesh reacted immediately, my pride and ego bruised. All I wanted to do was to turn around and confront that man regarding what he just said. I was enraged. But by the grace of God, I managed to not do anything - if throwing them dagger looks that could kill was nothing. LOL. I had to take a deep breath to calm myself and at that moment I remembered the lesson I learned in church that morning.... Slow down.. ask WHAT...WHY...WHAT. My husband was also used by the Holy Spirit. He reminded me not to let the words of other people affect me, otherwise I would be allowing them to control me. Thank God for him.
Now to process everything. What just happened? It was a classic lesson that showed me how"alive" my flesh really is. Why did it happen? Perhaps, because of my carelessness. And perhaps, because that guy is bitter and unhappy himself. Or maybe he was just being rude. What did I learn from the situation? First, I learned that it is best to plan on watching a movie so we'd know what the schedules are. So much for impulse! LOL. But above all, though easier said than
done -- I learned once more how to let go, forgive, and to speak blessings to those whom offended me. The battle between the "carnal" and the "spirit" man is perpetual. It occurs daily. That is why it is important to "walk in the Spirit so that we will not gratify our sinful nature". It would have been so easy to confront and deal with the man, but obeying the Holy Spirit accomplishes more than what I would have if I had a confrontation with the guy. If we need to kill our carnality, then we got to stop giving in to it. What we feed surely grows and what we starve dies. However, we cannot do this on our own. We can only do this through Jesus who strengthens us.
Galatians 5 says that one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is self-control. Thank You, Holy Spirit for letting your fruit manifest in me and through my husband today. Thank you, Jesus.
people. Very dynamic. The pastor started a series called Antology - Lessons from the Ant. It was a very practical sermon, one that you can learn from a lot. One of the things that stuck to my mind somehow, was when Pastor Troy related an incident that happened to him in the department store. A lady cut him of the line towards the cashier. This lady was irate and was very aggressive towards the sales people in the counter. He could have reacted to that situation in many ways, but he slowed down and asked himself 3 questions: WHAT just happened? WHY is this happening? WHAT can I learn from this situation? I don't know why this stuck in my mind, but it must have been the Holy Spirit. Little did I know that I would be needing that lesson very, very soon!After church, Joe and I proceeded to The Falls mall. My hubby wanted to drop by the Apple Store and maybe, watch the movie, Borne Ultimatum. Now mind you, this was something sponetaneous and impulsive on our part. But it seemed like a good idea at that time so off we went. Unfortunately, we were more than an hour early for the next movie showing, so we decided to just stick around and window shop....We stopped by a couple of stores, including our favorites, Restoration Hardware and Williams Sonoma.. I tell you, both places ares like candy stores to me.
At Williams Sonoma, I got lost in looking at the kitchen gadgets. I stopped by their recipe book displays and looked at a few, like Giada's (one of my faves). I
got excited at something that I saw in her book that I wanted Joe to see it, so I turned around to go to him, who wandered a few feet from me looking at some kitchen equipments. But there were 4 younger people right behind me who were talking, and when I passed by them, I accidentally hit one of the girls on the shoulder with the book I had in my hand. It wasn't very hard, just a little nudge. And of course, I apologized and went on. But when I passed by the guy who was with that lady (probably a boyfriend), I heard him say "stupid!"....... Now, that wasn't very nice to hear, wasn't it?My flesh reacted immediately, my pride and ego bruised. All I wanted to do was to turn around and confront that man regarding what he just said. I was enraged. But by the grace of God, I managed to not do anything - if throwing them dagger looks that could kill was nothing. LOL. I had to take a deep breath to calm myself and at that moment I remembered the lesson I learned in church that morning.... Slow down.. ask WHAT...WHY...WHAT. My husband was also used by the Holy Spirit. He reminded me not to let the words of other people affect me, otherwise I would be allowing them to control me. Thank God for him.
Now to process everything. What just happened? It was a classic lesson that showed me how"alive" my flesh really is. Why did it happen? Perhaps, because of my carelessness. And perhaps, because that guy is bitter and unhappy himself. Or maybe he was just being rude. What did I learn from the situation? First, I learned that it is best to plan on watching a movie so we'd know what the schedules are. So much for impulse! LOL. But above all, though easier said than
done -- I learned once more how to let go, forgive, and to speak blessings to those whom offended me. The battle between the "carnal" and the "spirit" man is perpetual. It occurs daily. That is why it is important to "walk in the Spirit so that we will not gratify our sinful nature". It would have been so easy to confront and deal with the man, but obeying the Holy Spirit accomplishes more than what I would have if I had a confrontation with the guy. If we need to kill our carnality, then we got to stop giving in to it. What we feed surely grows and what we starve dies. However, we cannot do this on our own. We can only do this through Jesus who strengthens us.Galatians 5 says that one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is self-control. Thank You, Holy Spirit for letting your fruit manifest in me and through my husband today. Thank you, Jesus.
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