Don't Be Afraid to Try Again

     Our family held a birthday celebration for our oldest son this past weekend.  What a joy it was to have our family together again, and of course, there was a lot of noise with grandchildren running and playing.  Among the

activities over the weekend, many in the family enjoyed swimming.  This is a great way to cool off in the hot summer sun.  Thankfully the grandchildren are learning to swim or already have that skill and that's a good thing in a state where there is a lot of water.
     I remember only too well when we took our young family swimming in a neighbor's pond.  Our oldest son had a close call when he got too far out from the shore into deep water.  His sister saw it happen and let us know he was in trouble.  We got him to shore, and I am happy to say it never stopped him from enjoying the water in the future.  He became a good swimmer to our delight.
     When we have a close call as our oldest son did early in his life, most of us want to shy away from ever doing that activity again.  Yet, that is the worst possible thing we can do.  We cannot conquer a fear unless we face it, and having the Lord's help makes all things work together for good.  This is true whether it pertains to swimming or if we have been hurt by someone.  We can either run away and hide from the hard things in life or we can learn from our experience and continue on.

Our son Aaron enjoying his birthday dinner.

     In three of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, the story is told of how Jesus faced 40 days and nights of fasting.  During this time, Satan appeared to Him to tempt Him.  First he appealed to his hunger.  Then he appealed to His emotions and questioning the love of God the Father.  Finally, Satan tempted Jesus with an offer of controlling the world if he would bow down and worship him.  Each time, however, Jesus resisted the devil and quoted correctly the Scripture which the enemy had try to twist.  Jesus did not run away from His adversary, but He resisted His attempts by speaking the truth of God's Word to him.  What a lesson for us to follow!
    James 4:7 tells us:  "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."  Then, in I Peter 5:9, we are admonished:  "Resist him, standing firm in your faith and in the knowledge that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.  "If we stand firm, the devil will flee and so will that fear of failing again.  We are overcomers in Jesus Christ and we must not forget that.
     One of my favorite songs is entitled "The Voice of Truth" by the group Casting Crowns.  The chorus goes like this:
    " But the voice of truth tells me a different story
And the voice of truth says 'Do not be afraid!'
And the voice of truth says 'This is for My glory'
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth"

It is not hard for us to know who the voice of truth is...Jesus Christ the Word of God incarnate.  Therefore, we must listen to that voice and put away our fears of failure.  If we have been hurt or had a bad experience, it does not mean that this is the end.  For the Christian, we are to pick ourselves up and listen to what God is saying to us instead.  There is a risk in everything we do my friends.  We can be hurt again but if we never take the risk and try once more, we may miss out on some rich blessings.  To God be the glory as we step out in faith each day resisting the devil at every turn and thanking God for the victories!  Selah!