The Splinter
Title: The Splinter
Subject: Grace, God''s; Deliverance
Once when my daughter was only four, she came running into the house with her hand high in the air. A splinter was buried deep in one of her fingers and it hurt at even the slightest touch. She wanted me to make it better, but I was instantly sad because I knew what had to be done. As she closely watched, I got a needle and cleaned it with some alcohol, then set about the terrible task.
As I worked the needle into her finger to gouge out the small piece of wood, she cried out, "Daddy, please don''t. It hurts." Though she never jerked her hand away, her tears quickly became sobs. The splinter hurt her. The needle hurt her. And for all she could understand, her daddy was hurting her.
Finally it was loosened. With a pair of tweezers I was just able to grab it and pull the splinter out. I cleaned her finger so there would be no infection and put on a bright green band-aid. "Is that better now?" I asked. "You OK?" She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. Within seconds she was laughing and running back outside to the land of the splinters. I went to the bedroom, and cried.
The wrongs we do in our lives are a lot like that splinter. They may be things we do toward other people, toward ourselves, or even directly toward God. And like that splinter they can work their way deep inside. We may know they 're there and, like my daughter, want them taken care of as long as it''s not going to hurt. We may decide to ignore them and pretend they''ve gone away. And sometimes, when we fail to pay attention, we may not even realize they''re there at all. But like a splinter that will eventually become infected, if nothing is done they will fester and become an even bigger problem.
Now what does any of this have to do with encouragement? An important part of encouragement is helping each other grow in knowledge and understanding. Jesus repeatedly cautioned His followers to open their eyes and ears to the lessons He was teaching and not become like so many around them.
Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: "You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people''s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. Matthew 13:13b-17
But there's something about that seeing and hearing part. As we grow in knowledge and understanding, we also grow in wisdom, the kind of wisdom that can come only from God. And God's wisdom is often the needle He uses to search for and dig out all the splinters in our lives...all the wrongs...all the pride, envy, hate, lust, arrogance...all the sin that has festered for years and years and it hurts. As we face the attitudes we must give up, it hurts. As we find an old lifestyle that must forever change, it hurts. As we know more and more how we''ve treated and often ignored God, it hurts. As we draw closer to Him and realize how far away we were...it hurts.
We run to our Heavenly Daddy and ask Him to make it better, then cry when He sets about the difficult task, focusing on our own pain while never realizing there are tears in His eyes as well.
Let us commit to encouraging each other so that we may see with His eyes, hear with His ears, understand with His heart, and turn always to the One who loves us so much that He will remove all the splinters in our lives.
Take care and be God's,
Chuck Graham
Ciloa ... Encouraging one another as long as it is called Today!
Ciloa is a registered trademark of Ciloa, Inc., a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
A Note of Encouragement is a copyright interest held by Ciloa, Inc.
As I worked the needle into her finger to gouge out the small piece of wood, she cried out, "Daddy, please don''t. It hurts." Though she never jerked her hand away, her tears quickly became sobs. The splinter hurt her. The needle hurt her. And for all she could understand, her daddy was hurting her.
Finally it was loosened. With a pair of tweezers I was just able to grab it and pull the splinter out. I cleaned her finger so there would be no infection and put on a bright green band-aid. "Is that better now?" I asked. "You OK?" She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. Within seconds she was laughing and running back outside to the land of the splinters. I went to the bedroom, and cried.
The wrongs we do in our lives are a lot like that splinter. They may be things we do toward other people, toward ourselves, or even directly toward God. And like that splinter they can work their way deep inside. We may know they 're there and, like my daughter, want them taken care of as long as it''s not going to hurt. We may decide to ignore them and pretend they''ve gone away. And sometimes, when we fail to pay attention, we may not even realize they''re there at all. But like a splinter that will eventually become infected, if nothing is done they will fester and become an even bigger problem.
Now what does any of this have to do with encouragement? An important part of encouragement is helping each other grow in knowledge and understanding. Jesus repeatedly cautioned His followers to open their eyes and ears to the lessons He was teaching and not become like so many around them.
Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: "You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people''s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. Matthew 13:13b-17
But there's something about that seeing and hearing part. As we grow in knowledge and understanding, we also grow in wisdom, the kind of wisdom that can come only from God. And God's wisdom is often the needle He uses to search for and dig out all the splinters in our lives...all the wrongs...all the pride, envy, hate, lust, arrogance...all the sin that has festered for years and years and it hurts. As we face the attitudes we must give up, it hurts. As we find an old lifestyle that must forever change, it hurts. As we know more and more how we''ve treated and often ignored God, it hurts. As we draw closer to Him and realize how far away we were...it hurts.
We run to our Heavenly Daddy and ask Him to make it better, then cry when He sets about the difficult task, focusing on our own pain while never realizing there are tears in His eyes as well.
Let us commit to encouraging each other so that we may see with His eyes, hear with His ears, understand with His heart, and turn always to the One who loves us so much that He will remove all the splinters in our lives.
Take care and be God's,
Chuck Graham
Ciloa ... Encouraging one another as long as it is called Today!
Ciloa is a registered trademark of Ciloa, Inc., a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
A Note of Encouragement is a copyright interest held by Ciloa, Inc.
