Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Monday October 31, 2011

God has blessed me in so many ways that I often have trouble in that I take His hand on me for granted. Taking God's things for granted is the modern equivalent of taking His Name or other things of Deity in vain. Vain in the sense it is used in scripture often means, without thought, or taking lightly.

One of God's blessings on me is that at seventy years of age I still have the hearing of a sixty nine year old. The other evening two ladies from our music department were talking (This is a surprise?) and one was whining, "I just can't do that piece" to which the other lady stated, "Honey, can't never could." I recall hearing that phrase often when I served in the mountains. I discovered this morning that I had written it in the margin of the Bible I used at the time. It is under the heading, "Colloquial sayings."

"Can't never could." There is a world of motivation meaning in the saying. It is true that if you really think you can't you become convinced this is a fact and so you never try. The same truth also works against you if you listen to the judgment of others concerning your supposed limitations.

When considering attempting something you have never tried it helps if you go ahead and try. If at first you actually fail, get some training in the area and then try again. It is true that everyone has some areas in which they will never become proficient, but you owe it to yourself give it an honest try. If you actually cannot do the thing, you can then move on to what you can learn to do well. And you should be wise enough to enjoy doing the activity you have chosen.

Choosing your own occupation often eliminates what others insist you should undertake. I know a man who submitted to his father to undertake the business of being an undertaker. He was miserable. I took him with me on trip in my Baron and he absolutely flipped at the thought of being an airline pilot. Within a week he had resigned, left town and enrolled in Emory Riddle University and is now a retired airline pilot. He said he enjoyed every minute of his life in the sky. In a sense he passed from being an undertaker for the dead to an uppertaker for the living.

In my life I have enjoyed serving in areas where I firmly believe the Lord has chosen for me. Knowing this is a great source of encouragement when things don't go as planned. I know that what we call failure is in reality a training session.

Life will often takes turns that we would not knowingly choose. Such was the case of the Apostle John who found himself a prisoner laboring under horrible working conditions in a rock quarry on the Island of Patmos, yet the Bible records that he "was in the spirit on the Lord's day." Revelation 1:10.

"Can't never could." I hope you will banish this "Can't" from your vocabulary.

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2011 Use with credit Note: Can't sounds like Cain't.

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