One day as I was sitting in a drive-thru, I noticed the driver behind me was moving her arms around like she was hitting something or someone. I quickly realized that it wasn't a someone that she was swatting at, it was a bee. What did I do? I did what anyone else would do. I nestled deeper in my seat and adjusted my rear and side view mirrors to get the best view, because I knew the entertainment was just beginning.
And then it happened. She exploded out of her car in sheer terror. She was doing everything but the centipede to get the bee off her. This was a girl that didn't fit the type that would bring attention to herself in this way. But not today, not in this moment. All that image stuff was out the window. The bee was on her, and so was every eyeball in the vicinity. It was hard not to watch. After all, this isn't something you get to see every day. She actually ran across the parking lot leaving her car empty. Even the guy at the window stopped and watched the drama unfold.
Now when it was all said and done, when the bee flew away or died, when the flailing stopped, visible embarrassment set in. We've all been there. You know the feelings that come with this kind of moment. This was probably one of the longest walks to her car that she ever had and will have. She probably didn't even enjoy the ranch chicken wrap after that. Who would?
In 1 Corinthians 15:55 Paul quotes a part of the prophet Hosea's message to Israel. "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" At that time Israel was rejecting the only power that could save them, God. Paul is reminding and warning the Corinthian church not to do the same. I think this is a needed reminder for us, today - a warning not to reject the God who saves and to fully believe in what Jesus accomplished through the cross. He became the anti-venom to death’s sting. Jesus' death actually brought more life.
What if a part of the reason bees, jellyfish, etc. sting is to remind us of something? That yeah, life can sometimes hurt. But there is this place that was created that has no hurt, no sting, and it was created for you, and you can stay there forever. But if you want to enjoy it there, you need to live and bring it here. And you can't do that when you’re running away from it. Sometimes we're called into pain so that we can bring relief to someone else. Sometimes it's only when we feel it ourselves that we can begin to move with compassion to others instead of just thinking about it.
This scripture and the bee incident has gotten ahold of me. Specifically, it's got me thinking about death, my life, and how I've been mixing the two. Do I really believe that Jesus took the stinger and the venom out of death? Have I been running away from a harmless insect? Is the fear of pain and dying making most of my decisions, directing my thoughts and the choices I make in the wrong way? Now, don't get me wrong, I don't want to die, nor do I want pain. But I can't let the fear of them become bigger than God. Death needs to be like a diving board to a pool. We use it to jump off of, to propel us, to get us moving, not as the side rails that we cling to because we're afraid to get in.
How long has it been since you were in a place where you really needed God? When was the last time you needed faith for something? Maybe the comfort and peace you've been feeling isn't a good thing. Maybe the path you’re on isn't God's but your own. Maybe He wants you doing something else but you refuse to put down the bug spray and come outside. Faith in God isn't supposed to make our lives more comfortable or easy. Sometimes it means running right into the hive.
When your physical body draws its last breath, when you’re walking from the grave to Jesus, what will the walk be like? As you step into eternity realizing how small and powerless death really was, will it be long and embarrassing, or will you choose today to go and do whatever it is that God calls you to, leaving the fear of death in the rear view?
Don't allow the fear of death keep you from getting and enjoying what you came for, what you were made for. Respect it, knowing that this could be your last day on earth but don't hide from it. Remember, the sting of death has been conquered. Live like you believe it.
And then it happened. She exploded out of her car in sheer terror. She was doing everything but the centipede to get the bee off her. This was a girl that didn't fit the type that would bring attention to herself in this way. But not today, not in this moment. All that image stuff was out the window. The bee was on her, and so was every eyeball in the vicinity. It was hard not to watch. After all, this isn't something you get to see every day. She actually ran across the parking lot leaving her car empty. Even the guy at the window stopped and watched the drama unfold.
Now when it was all said and done, when the bee flew away or died, when the flailing stopped, visible embarrassment set in. We've all been there. You know the feelings that come with this kind of moment. This was probably one of the longest walks to her car that she ever had and will have. She probably didn't even enjoy the ranch chicken wrap after that. Who would?
In 1 Corinthians 15:55 Paul quotes a part of the prophet Hosea's message to Israel. "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" At that time Israel was rejecting the only power that could save them, God. Paul is reminding and warning the Corinthian church not to do the same. I think this is a needed reminder for us, today - a warning not to reject the God who saves and to fully believe in what Jesus accomplished through the cross. He became the anti-venom to death’s sting. Jesus' death actually brought more life.
What if a part of the reason bees, jellyfish, etc. sting is to remind us of something? That yeah, life can sometimes hurt. But there is this place that was created that has no hurt, no sting, and it was created for you, and you can stay there forever. But if you want to enjoy it there, you need to live and bring it here. And you can't do that when you’re running away from it. Sometimes we're called into pain so that we can bring relief to someone else. Sometimes it's only when we feel it ourselves that we can begin to move with compassion to others instead of just thinking about it.
This scripture and the bee incident has gotten ahold of me. Specifically, it's got me thinking about death, my life, and how I've been mixing the two. Do I really believe that Jesus took the stinger and the venom out of death? Have I been running away from a harmless insect? Is the fear of pain and dying making most of my decisions, directing my thoughts and the choices I make in the wrong way? Now, don't get me wrong, I don't want to die, nor do I want pain. But I can't let the fear of them become bigger than God. Death needs to be like a diving board to a pool. We use it to jump off of, to propel us, to get us moving, not as the side rails that we cling to because we're afraid to get in.
How long has it been since you were in a place where you really needed God? When was the last time you needed faith for something? Maybe the comfort and peace you've been feeling isn't a good thing. Maybe the path you’re on isn't God's but your own. Maybe He wants you doing something else but you refuse to put down the bug spray and come outside. Faith in God isn't supposed to make our lives more comfortable or easy. Sometimes it means running right into the hive.
When your physical body draws its last breath, when you’re walking from the grave to Jesus, what will the walk be like? As you step into eternity realizing how small and powerless death really was, will it be long and embarrassing, or will you choose today to go and do whatever it is that God calls you to, leaving the fear of death in the rear view?
Don't allow the fear of death keep you from getting and enjoying what you came for, what you were made for. Respect it, knowing that this could be your last day on earth but don't hide from it. Remember, the sting of death has been conquered. Live like you believe it.
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