Have you ever had to stand on your feet for a long time?
When I was in the military, we would constantly be standing in some parade, or at some post, or some other place they thought necessary. Sometimes it would be just standing, but other times we would have to stand at attention, or parade rest for hours at a time. It can really wear on your knees and back to stand for that long. Especially if you have your helmet,gear and weapon with you. Standing for long times can be a real pain.
I was talking to someone a while back about standing in church. At our church, we have songs that we sing at the beginning of the service, and most people stand for the entire time the songs are being played. It usually only lasts for about 25-30 mins, but its still a bit of time, depending on your background.
Anyway, this guy was telling me about how he didn't really like standing in church for that long. He thought it was uncomfortable, and possibly even unnecessary to stand for that long for anything, even in church.
Without going into deep theological discussion about standing during worship, I'll just say this- standing in church is a good necessary thing. I like it. I think its a position of worship.
Anyway, he said his piece, I gave it its cursory review, and we went on.
A few weeks later, he came to me with a story. Almost immediately after we had that conversation about standing, things at his job changed. He was on a special project that required for him to literally stand on his feet for 8-12 hours a day for 36 days straight. Outside in the elements. Rain, wind, heat, cold, everything. He told me that he had nothing to lean on, nothing to sit on, all he could do was just stand there.
Here comes the good part. While standing there, he came to the realization that he actually could stand for an extended period of time, and that he probably wasn't looking at the standing part of a worship service in the correct way. He told me that 36 days on his feet changed the way that he looked at standing for 30 mins in the church.
Awesome. Isn't it great how God often uses our life experiences to help shape the way in which we view our world? Sometimes it appears humorous the way in which he uses life circumstance to reveal something about our character and the way in which we respond to the world around us.
What can we learn from this? Watch out what you complain about. The lesson may be much longer in duration than what you may want to endure. Secondly, when you are going through something painful or comfortable, ask the Lord to reveal to you what you can learn from it, so you may not need to repeat it again.
Is there something you're going through right now that is painful that you can learn something from? Stand on your feet and thank the Lord for refining your character. Thank Him for growing you into a better person.
Happy standing!
blessings
matt
Great story!! Thanks!
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