The Easter Sunrise Service was absolutely the best one yet! Having partcipated in these for 30 years (except for the “Covid” mess), we have witnessed beautiful sunrises, cold and windy sunrises, mosquito-filled sunrises, and sunrises so cold and we we had to move to the Community Center. This year, the clouds clouded our vision of the sunrise, but the singing, preaching, and great fellowship we enjoyed made it exceptionally memorable! We did have an exception, Cathy’s Cinnamon Rolls to go with the coffee and orange juice. We though about a poor substitute and checked on the price of donuts, but the funds needed seemed to dampen the expected “fun”!
The thought got me to thinking about the Bible and our lives. There are many kinds of donuts, but the only ones I like are those with a sugar glaze on them. Holy Scripture is filled with wholesome ingredients, like the donut which includes grains, dairy, often fruit, and cooked in a protein derivative. The Bible includes the exploits and explosions of individual lives. I think about King David, who as a youth killed a lion and bear protecting his father’s sheep and a giant, twice his size, protecting his nation in battle. Despite his great accomplishments, his downfall was Bathsheba. Samson did some extraordinary physical exploits, but when he laid his head on Deliah’s lap his life was over. Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived, but his reign was marred by his harem. Saint Peter, in an attempt to defend the Savior, cut a man’s ear off, but he fell prey to a servant girl’s questions and denied even knowing who Jesus was.
What these examples have in common is not those ladies took these men down, but that little things accomplished what big things would never have. I could site many other examples of those who were on the right road until they turned off and went their own way! Jesus talked to a “rich, young ruler” who thought he had accomplished perfection, but left Jesus sorrowful!
It has always been the little foxes in life that do the greatest amount of harm and bring the most pain. One commentator wrote that “the church is often assailed by mischievous influences, which do grievous harm”. I think we could safely say that our whole society majors in minors which causes the greatest to society.
There are at least four things I see around Port O’Connor that cause me alarm. The largest small fox is self-centeredness. Many people look after their own personal desires, concerns, needs, and wishes while ignoring those same things in others. Love of pleasure creates prodigals. Selfish wills bring separation from neighbors and even loved ones. It is common that selfishness produces loneliness and we have several lonely people here. Friends are those who give of themselves for the benefit of others and reap the reward of fellowship.
I also see people who are always discontented. It seems that a slight insult, which a humble person would scarcely notice, will torment a proud person to madness and will spoil all their comforts. A larger home and a new pickup will not bring much more than temporary happiness, never true joy. Pride always spoils meekness, which is simply strength under control. Nothing will ever be enough for the discontented! I believe that we should strive for better, but not to the point of destroying our own vineyards – our personal comfort.
Another pit that is easily fallen into is the lack of faithfulness. I have a very strange way of starting my pickup – I turn the key in the ignition without thinking about battery cables! I expect it to start 100% of the time. I think faithfulness should be just like my battery. Every time I tell someone that I will, I should unless I have something that prohibits me and then I will explain before the event is about to happen. I recently read that people in the 70’s believed that to be faithful to a church meant attending at least three times each week. Now, attending three times a month is the standard of faithfulness. There are many CEOs who live in Port O’Connor when it comes to church attendance – Christmas, Easter Only! We are always glad to see you, but we would enjoy having that “gladness” more often!
There is a “King James Version” of the Bible word that is often not understood: slothfulness. It is a fancy word for laziness. “The worst of sluggards only ask for a little slumber, and he would be angry if accused of idleness.” We have lost services in our community because the companies could not find a dependable workforce. When I was building homes, I found my greatest task was keeping people on task – often just showing up for work was more than they could accomplish. Often it is called procrastination, which is simply a thief of the time. Without planning to delay longer than necessary, minutes turn into hours, into days, into months, and a year has passed us by and the work is not finished.
I have learned that if I will work on the small things in life, the large things will fall into their rightful place. When I allow the little foxes to occupy my space, my vineyard gets destroyed and I am not as productive as I could be. May we all strive to be more than donuts – with a little icing dribbled over our exterior!
