WHEN A SPLIT-SECOND CAN CHANGE A LIFE

Lately I have been contemplating the split second. More precisely, the things that can happen in split seconds to dramatically alter our lives. This is not a morbid train of thought, quite the contrary in fact. Through a few incredible instances God has made it abundantly clear that I should never hold in contempt the split second, the dawdling minute, or the hour that drags on. Behind them all is His grace, His wisdom and His ultimate plan to protect us. There are a lot of things in life that blow my mind but very few compare to seeing God move in ways unimaginable.

     Recently I was prompted to recall a phone conversation I had with my husband a few months ago. He had been frustrated at the time and could not find his wallet. Work was over and he just wanted to get home. Usually he sets off at five but his lost wallet had kept him searching for another twenty minutes. Eventually he found it hidden in an enclave beneath the car stereo. When he called me back he was puzzled.

     “ I can’t even remember putting it there,” he said, “why would I do that?”

     Why indeed, I wondered, because my husband is a very precise and methodical man. Very rarely does he do anything without thinking.

    CHOE BRERETON finds assurance in her belief that her steps are ordered by God... | more... |

FINDING AN IDENTITY IN GOD

It is true that we live in a world of fake and fraud. I do not believe that there has been another time in all of history that society as we know it that is as synthetic as our society in America is today. Studies show that we are altering ourselves in many and various ways. Some prefer the altering of plastic surgery, with all the skin level changes that can be achieved. Still others alter their identities by stealing others, leaving their victims to pay the cost of there new identity. Yet others use money to create an illusion of who they are; building their very own kingdoms out of plastic credit cards.

      I know how this infectious thinking can grab a hold of a person. A few years ago I was caught up in the physical fitness craze. I worked out five or six days a week. I would get up from out of bed at 2am in the morning and be at the gym by 2:30am. I would work out feverishly for an hour and head off to work to spend my day drinking protein shakes and eating chicken; lots and lots of chicken!

    In a the first of a new column on how Jesus Christ works through individual lives, American CHRIS THOMPSON writes of his search for identity... | more... |