Live it
Frustration comes from knowing whatever you do is not enough. Most of us have been in situations where we did the best we could do, just to see the disappointment on someone's face. Recently there was a remake of a movie called, Karate Kid. The one thing I take from these movies is the way the instructor taught students the techniques of karate. Without knowing why, the first kid followed the instruction of "Wax on, wax off," as he waxed his teacher's many cars for hours on end. In the remake, the boy takes his jacket off, hangs it on a rack, takes it off, throws it on the floor, picks it up and repeats the action over and over. All this was designed to train them to perform certain reactive moves to the aggressive moves of an assailant. Both kids lost their patience as they weren't told at first why they were doing these things, but both learned the technique and were later successful and grateful.

In the same way, we often react to doing seemingly pointless chores without knowing why. But in our case, we have the promise of 1Tim 4:4-6: "For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer." Today as we run in our circles and "wax on, wax off," may we remember to thank God for loving us enough to continue to teach us, many times over the loud objections we raise.

Pray it
I'm not what I want to be, but I am Whose I want to be. Help me, Heavenly Father, to do a better job reflecting it.

Resources
Like fireworks against a dark sky, our praise should stand out in darks times. (2000)
Before you pray, it's best to see if anyone's listening to you. (2001)
If Jesus is Lord of your life, He will take the steering wheel, not be co-pilot. (2003)
If you don't want trouble, stay out of the conversation that doesn't involve you. (2004)
We must deal with the consequences of unconfessed sin. (2005)
Following God means we'll probably have to move. (2006)
It's not enough to pray, you should do it with great frequency. (2008)
Motivation is born just above the level of our toleration. (2009)

1. One-minute Devotionals began on January 2, 2006 and are the original creation of James R. Green, Prayertower Webservant Content is derived from his alternating and sequential survey of both the Old and New Testament to offer insight on Scripture.
2. Resources are derived from daily devotions of James R. Green called, Just Thinkin'... (2000-2003), Read the Bible Thru in 365 Days (2004), Pray Thru the Word in 365 Days (2005) and One Minute Devotional (2006-2008).
3. Scripture: God's Word Translation (c)1995 by God's Word to the Nations. All Rights Reserved.

Copyright ©2010 James R. Green, Webservant - Prayertower Ministries
All Rights Reserved