I rented & watched the movie, "Soul Surfer" the other night. It is an uplifting true story about the surfer who lost her arm to a shark and returned to competition against the odds to become a champion. It is a good story in the great list of "overcoming the odds" stories. I found my self drawn to her main competitor in the story. She was of equal accomplishment and never extended support to the girl who lost her arm. She was in it for her self and her alone. The movie, though, showed a happy ending where the competitor came around and "played nice."
You and I don't see that very often. I have been lucky. While I have some that I might call adversaries, they do not wish me ill. Defeat, maybe! But the people in my life are easy to navigate because I will never give up or give in. I can smile with them and at them.
I have friends though that are tormented by demons in their head and real adversaries that want nothing short of failure for my friends. It makes me ache.
I have a preacher friend that can't shake the negative vibes that he constantly gets from a very few people that have tried to unsettle him for years. This pressure robs him of the joy of the work that God has set before him. He has broad support from silent masses, but it is the constant questioning and doubting that becomes his curse. The weird thing is that he is actually excelling at the moment! He just can't enjoy the ride.
I have a politician friend who is leader of the free world. He knew it would be tough when he took the job and he even said that it would take a while to get things going in the right direction. His adversaries started day one to see that he could not succeed. They did a good job, and he did not respond. He is loosing the fight, because WE like train wrecks. I have thought to myself, "Who could have pulled this off?" My answer, "No One." Even Reagan could not succeed in this environment. I see no one in the public eye that has the trust to be in charge. This politician will be very successful after he is out of office and suddenly will be very smart again.
I have uncovered several business friends, who have gone through some of the things that I am weathering. A couple of them will succeed through these moments. One is being piled on by adversaries that wish nothing but ill will.
It is sad to me that in almost all cases, the adversaries of my friends are "Christians". Their Bibles seem to say, "Be Perfect as I (Them) am perfect." These Christians are well equipped to deal out the "Go in Peace, but just GO! vibes" or the, "If you could see the you that I see, you would give up!"
If we could stop a minute and make a list of the people that bug us and then ask GOD if they are also on His list, His answer might change us.
"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as thought something strange were happening to you...............
.........So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good."
I Peter 4: 12-19 (read the in between parts!)
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