Manna in the Morning

One of the enemies of faith is undo criticism. From time to time we are all victims of the harshness of another’s attack. We should remember that God’s opinion is in the final analysis the only one that really matters. We should also remember that when we are criticized we are in fairly good company. It’s been reported that when the famous preacher Henry Ward Beecher preached in Brooklyn, New York, he carried a handful of flowers into the pulpit and placed them in a vase on the stand from which he spoke. The next day, the local newspaper carried lengthy articles condemning Beecher for desecrating the pulpit with flowers. When Samuel Morse was trying to get money from Congress for a telegraph line from Baltimore to Washington, he had to endure criticism from the press for 11 years. When Cyrus Field was trying to lay the first transatlantic cable, the newspapers denounced him as “a mad freak of stubborn ignorance.” Jesus also endured criticism from the religious sector of His day when He healed the sick on the Sabbath or when He rightly claimed to be the Son of God. So you see, we are in great company.

By now some people would be hard-pressed to remember many, if any, of the New Year’s resolutions they made just a couple of days ago. Yet, I think it is important for us to make resolutions not just on New Year’s day but whenever we realize that there are changes that need to be made. The Bible challenges us constantly about things we need to consider about life and how we live it. There are things we need to have resolve about and be very serious in that resolve. One such matter is discussed by the Apostle Paul in Eph. 4:29. There he writes, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up.” What a great challenge. We live in a society that seems to make it easy to be critical and to bring others down. But God’s Word clearly encourages us to edify one another...to build one another up and to encourage one another. Today, why not intentionally seek out someone you know who needs some encouragement and do your part in lifting their spirits.