Posted on 12/20/2007 7:20:31 PM PST by Das Outsider
I received a particularly thoughtful and uplifting message from the former Constitution Party presidential candidate Mike Peroutka's site recently, and thought that I'd share it.
Dear Friends of the Constitutional Republic,
During this Christmas Season, as we buy gifts and trim trees and greet relatives and friends, we hear much about the circumstances of the birth of Christ. As we prepare for the celebration of Christmas, we rehearse the Gospel stories of the coming of our Savior by remembering the wise men, the star they followed (as a child I was always fascinated by the camels they rode), the manger, the inn, the census, the shepherds and the choirs of angels. We not only hear about these events, we sing about them and listen to blessed music that inspires us to recall and celebrate the coming of Emmanuel and His perfect sacrifice and perfect example.
All these circumstances comprise the background and the setting for an event of the most profound significance. The most important event since Creation, the birth of the Savior was the moment when the temporal and the eternal came together in the Providence of God.
Contemplating the circumstances surrounding this wondrous event began me to thinking about other circumstances -- the circumstances of my life and how I have been viewing them. It seems we are always using the circumstances of our lives as an excuse for our wrongful actions. (Did you notice how I just switched to the plural to include y’all in my sin?) We do this as individuals all the time. We also do it as a culture; and on a national level as well.
We forgive ourselves for our transgressions by saying that we did our best “under the circumstances”. We say that we acted the way we did because such action was “dictated by circumstance”. And we are forever talking about being a “victim of circumstances”.
Well, I suppose that’s alright if you want to forgive yourself and “feel better”. But considering Christ’s perfect example (and the fact that we don’t have the authority to forgive ourselves) perhaps we should strive toward a more perfect (read sincere) understanding of the circumstances of our lives, where they come from, and how we should view them.
If I asked you to tell me who was the author of the “circumstances” of Christ’s birth, you would probably not hesitate to say that although they were foretold by the prophets, they were authored by the Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace!
This answer, I hope, was an easy one for you.
But who (Who) is the author of the circumstances of your life? And mine? Is it some lesser being or some pagan notion of “chance”? Well, of course not, you must admit. Isn’t the Divine Author of the Incarnation the same Author of the joys and trials of your life as well? Hasn’t He arranged and structured all the events of your life to coincide for your good if...you love Him? If you are not sure then check out Romans 8:28.
But sometimes the circumstances don’t seem so good, am I right? The trials that come at us seem like random events in a random and evil world. What about this bad stuff? Is God the author of this, too? Well, in a word, yes.
In the Book of James, the Apostle begins by instructing us, his brethren, to “count it all joy when you fall into various trials” (James 1:2). The first observation I would make about this verse is that it is presented not as a suggestion but as a command. We are commanded to view our trials in this way. Moreover, as Thomas Manton points out in his famous Commentaries, James does not refer to them as “afflictions” but as “trials”, “because of God’s purpose in sending them”. The afflictions of the saints are not judgments but “corrections” or “trials”. Manton goes further to describe trials as “God’s discipline to mortify sin, or His means to discover grace, to prove our faith, love, patience, sincerity, constancy, etc..” We are admonished to take care so that “no impatience, vanity, murmuring, or worldliness of spirit may appear...” in us.
So, all this is for our good, our betterment. We are told that the arrows that pierce our heart with sorrow or with pain are arrows sent by God and directed to and especially for us. Why? Well, to remind us of our need for Him and to direct us to the joy and comfort of surrendering to His will for us.
For example, in my own life right now I am facing a situation that has caused severe disruption and disunity in my family life, suspicion among our family members, and hurtful accusations by and between cherished family members and friends. Some of the relationships that were central to my life have been affected. Some are strained and some seem damaged beyond repair. Why is this happening? God’s message for me in this crisis could very well be that I need to become closer to Him and to rely on Him and Him alone for my sustenance. All the earthly friendships and all the money in the universe are blessings from Him. You and I are just stewards of what He allows us to watch over and the beneficiaries of His free grace. He has revealed these things to us and it can be no other way.
If we can successfully internalize the truth that God reveals through James, then we can face adversity with confidence knowing that the circumstances of our lives are God-ordained especially for us, individually and perfectly. We can then gratefully accept our situation be it joyful or sad. We can, with God’s grace, accept and witness to His truth that the trials and the joys are one and the same. In this way we become not “victims of circumstance” but “Champions of Circumstances”. How about that for a New Year’s resolution?
God Bless you and Merry Christmas, 2007
Michael A. Peroutka
Publisher, TheAmericanView.com
A special Christmas PING!
I love this. To face our challenges with courage and wisdom and not defeatism or cynicism is the Way. He is the the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Great Post.
[... We are admonished to take care so that
“no impatience, vanity, murmuring, or worldliness
of spirit may appear...” in us...]
Ouch! I’m going to obey that and stay away
from the CAPTION THIS PICTURE threads.
Thanks for the ping DO...
JO - CHAMPION OF CIRCUMSTANCE!
Well yes... it was a good post. However, as my
friend Star Traveler and I have observed, Free
Republic is looking less and less Judeo Christian
and more liberal (other doctrines) every day.
A few years ago, I joined our local Republican club.
You could not tell it was a conservative organization
for they were a bunch of whiney, can’t do it, find
the problem not the solution do nothings. It was a
huge waste of my time.
It is my opinion based on observation, that nearly
every thread is molested within the first ten posts.
Some green liberal makes a nasty or insulting comment
that taints the post-versation. Being a proud tinfoil
wearer, I believe it is a conspiracy to FREEP JACK
this conservative forum.
CHAMPION OF CIRCUMSTANCE
NOT A CHRISTOPHOBE
You said — “It is my opinion based on observation, that nearly every thread is molested within the first ten posts. Some green liberal makes a nasty or insulting comment that taints the post-versation. Being a proud tinfoil
wearer, I believe it is a conspiracy to FREEP JACK this conservative forum.”
It does make one wonder, when seeing this happen. There are obviously some virulent anti-Christian, anti-God, anti-Bible posters out there who are more than happy to jump in and cause a “thread-crash” off the road (and topic at hand).
Any who would “contend for the faith” are considered to be divisive, hate-filled, narrow-minded and/or bigoted. BUT, we see that Jesus’ words are all the more appropriate in these circumstances, it seems...
Matthew 10:32-41
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.
33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.
35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’;
36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’
37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.
39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.
40 “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.
41 He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.
—
And so it is, here, on Free Republic, too...
Regards,
Star Traveler
As usual, brother Star Traveler continues to
wield the Sword decisively and perceptively.
[... There are obviously some virulent anti-Christian, anti-God, anti-Bible posters out there ...]
ADD anti-American, anti-order, anti-virtue, anti-truth...
SOME are regular FR posters who think they are conservative.
SOME are trolls who know how to “play” FReepers against
each other... it’s Satanic in a “Screwtape” kind of way.
SOME are bad company corrupting good morals - even in
cyber space.
SOME poison the well by trying to be the smartest guy on
the thread. Really, how hard is it to find what can go
wrong and be all hand wringing “concerned” about every
little thing.
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