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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for January 25, 2011
“How Can God Work On You If You Won’t Stay Put?”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
Do you know what a vise is?
It has two heavy metal sides that crank together and hold things so you can work on them.
For example, I had a machine screw that was too long, so I used the vise to hold it steady while I sawed it.
The problem was, the screw kept moving. It’s really hard to work on something if it won’t stay put.
I think the same thing happens to us sometimes. We find ourselves in a vise, and life begins putting the saw to us. The exact thing we do not want to do is stay put. We will do whatever we can to get out of that vise and away from the saw.
But listen to James chapter one, verses two through four. “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
The end result is being perfect and complete. We will be better than ever when the trial is over; but we have to let it do its work, and that means staying put.
Take marriage, for example. There have certainly been times of discomfort in our marriage, and what is the natural reaction to discomfort? Pull away from it.
So when our marriage grew uncomfortable, why didn’t we pull away?
It was due to our commitment. Our vow to stay together was the vise that kept us from pulling apart, and by staying put, the trials were able to work on us and make us better.
Are you following the illustration? The vise holds you in place so the tool can do its work. The tool is the trial and the commitment is the vise.
If we run from trials, they cannot do their work, and we will never improve.
That’s where the vise of commitment comes in. Your commitment holds you in place so the trials can do their work.
It works in marriage, and it works at work. Have you ever met someone who quit their job at the first sign of discomfort? People like that don’t grow because they won’t stay put. They run from the trial so the trial can’t work on them.
Some people, though, are committed to their work. That commitment becomes the vise that holds them in place when trials come along; and those are the people that grow and mature and become the best workers.
Then there is parenting. That’s a job full of trials, but most parents are deeply committed to their children. When trials come along, they stay put due to their commitment, and the trials make them better. But the parents who do flee the responsibility? Look at them. They are about the least mature people you will ever meet because they refuse to stay put and let the trials mature them.
I see this in church congregations. Some people hop from church to church because at every church they experience discomfort. They flee as soon as a trial begins, and this stunts their growth. On the other hand, some people are committed to their church, and that commitment becomes the vise that holds them steady while trials make them stronger.
We stressed commitment as we raised our children. If they wanted to join a team, for example, we told them that once they started, they couldn’t quit. Yes, trials might make them want to quit, but we forced them to make a commitment, and that commitment kept them in place during the trials. And to me it’s obvious how that will build a child’s character.
This applies to all kinds of commitments. When you commit to keep your word, or honor your parents, or be a man of integrity – every vow and every decision becomes a vise that holds you in place. Then trials come along and, due to your commitment, you stand fast and the trial makes you stronger.
The person without commitments, however, has no vise to hold them steady. When trials come, they pull away. They think it’s good that they are escaping the trial, but it’s actually stunting their growth because trials bring maturity.
Isaiah 48:10 says, “See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.”
Zechariah 13 talks about being put into the fire and being refined and tested.
Yes, there are some situations we should flee from, such as violence, but the general rule is to hang in there when the going gets tough, because it’s that very toughness that refines us into better people.
In fact, we should count it all joy when we face various trials, according to James chapter one.
So we face them, square on, and when we feel like squirming away, we let our commitments become the vise that holds us in place, “that we may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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