Taking It For Granted

I began thinking about how much I took for granted the people in my life who have always been there and whom have grown up with me, that have made significant contributions to my development as a person and as a Christian. To those people I have spurned in the process of my self-fulfilling, egotistical conquest, “My bad. I am really sorry, and need your forgiveness.” To those people who know what I’m talking about, you and I both need to repent and seek reconciliation. To those people who don’t have a clue as to what I’m talking about, then you need to read on carefully because failure to do so may lead you to miss out on an opportunity to experience the power of God through the very people you know so well that you began to think that God could not use them to do anything worthwhile or meaningful in your life with them. In Luke chapter 4:16, we find Jesus coming back to his hometown of Nazareth in worst kind of inglorious solemnity you could imagine– people just could not accept the fact that Jesus had something to offer them despite all the miracles and teaching he has done everywhere else simply because they grew up with him, because they “knew” him. If we read Luke 4:22-24, you could see what happens when our perceptions of people cause us to take for granted what God may be doing in our lives through them. “All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. ‘Isn’t this Joseph’s son?’ they asked. Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ And you will tell me, ‘Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’ ‘Truly I tell you,’he continued, ‘no prophet is accepted in his hometown.” (Luke 4:22-24) If we continue reading this passage we learn that the town of Nazareth drives Jesus out, but not before they try to kill him. I share this passage because I don’t want you to lose out, like I have, on the experience of having people contribute to your life now and in the future simply because you know something about them and their past. The amazing thing about God’s renewal is that the past is over and His mercies are new every morning– with all people in all walks in spite of who they are and who we are. Jesus came to set the captives free and lead the blind to see. If we truly want to witness Jesus’ favor, it is time to stop taking for granted God’s people in your life and be open to the possibility of their influence.