Anyone wants a genie?

-
6So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: "Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." - Luke 7:6-8 -

Driving in today, there was an advertisement for house-cleaning service with a genie doing his magic and bang! The house is clean. Then it had me thinking. I was wondering what happened to Aladdin after he won the princess. Would he have turn into a big, over-sized, spoil brat who gets everything he wanted?

The thing about having a genie is that, it makes us fat and spoil. If we can just sit there, snap our fingers and pressio! The house is clean. Snap! And garden is done. Snap! Dinner is ready. Snap! A beautiful partner is there to wait on us. If this is the case, I think a couple of things will may happen:

1) We get fatter and lazier!
2) We become the hoarder of things
3) We get bored with life and start to take things for granted
4) We become more inpatient and short-temper as we get into the state of mind of "we want it and want it now"
5) We will never grow and develop as a person. Rather we will still be in our infancy where tantrums are thrown when things to work the way we want it too, rather than working through things. We learn to scheme and deceive to get what we want.

This passage of the centurion has to be one of the great encounters a person has with Jesus. The centurion wasn't just looking for a genie for a quick fix to life's solutions. He was looking for a permanent solution to see his daughter fully recovered and in the process, I believe found something greater. He found a faith that even surprised the Son of God and in the process found life for him and his daughter. He grew as a spiritual and physical man that day. But he didn't take charge of the situation, he allow Jesus to take charge of the situation. He understood what authority was and in order for anything sufficient to be achieve, he had to submit to the lordship of Jesus.

What are we after in our Christian walk? A genie? or A Lord?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Devotion - Where's my security?

-
Psa 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully [and] wonderfully made: marvelous [are] thy works; and [that] my soul knoweth right well.   This has to be one of my favourite verses in Scripture.  The days passed has made me think about my little journey and I must admit that I have become less and less certain about my path through this thing called life. Every step seems to be filled with holes and stumps; every turn and corner looks the same. Reminds me, when you are lost in the forest or a strange city, every turn seem to lead you back to the same place. Yes, this is before Google maps when you actually have to walk around with a paper map in your hands. It makes me ask the question, "What is the point of all this?" The work, making money, buy a big and latest car, bigger house, etc. I don't have the answers, just more questions. Everything does fade in our eyes, the value and shine disappears. People - family and friends around me are with us for a short time. But
Read more

Uniqueness of each journey

-
Image
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.. (Psa 139:14)   Doing church this morning, there was a very interesting discussion about mental health and the effects of lockdown. There are so many opinions and ideas out there; on social media, in conservations. Everywhere you turn, there is an opinion to pull you over to this side and that side. Life is never black and white, but shades of uncertainties, fear, joys, and achievements. There are no two people with the same history, background, mental wellbeing, and life experiences.  What makes one person tick and makes another feel. Each person has their own journey. It is unique to that person. It is the beauty of life that we have such an amazing range and variety of people to interact with. And somehow, we are tried to push others to be the same as us for whatever reason. There is a saying, “Slow to speak, quick to listen”. Listening to others does not mean we have
Read more

Problems, Problems and Problems...

-
Image
  Scripture: Daniel 6:13-14 “ Then they said to the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, Your Majesty, or to the decree you put in writing. He still prays three times a day.”   When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him. ”   As Melbourne enters into lockdown 5.0 for this year, it has been increasing difficult at times to maintain an upbeat spirit. But this devotion has been stirring for a long time, and I have procrastinated for one reason or another. Today is the day. In the story of this passage; Daniel’s enemies lured the king into making a decree that no one can pray to any god but him. Knowing that this would trap Daniel. But Daniel didn’t stray and continue his daily prayers. Long story short (read Daniel 6 if you are interested), Daniel fell into the trap, king was upset since he liked Daniel but too late. He had to throw Daniel into the l
Read more