A recurring inspirant used in the testimony section of the Fairwood church service is the statement that people can get as much from the testimonies as they can from the actual sermon. (I just made up the word inspirant, and I think it’s pretty cool.) Today’s church service was a perfect example of that for me.
Uncle Paul was talking about the ups and downs of the Christian life – the emotional/spiritual rollercoaster. He turned to Mr. and Mrs. Noss and asked if, at their point in life (they’re in their 80s-90s) they could testify to that being the way life works: sometimes you’re up and feeling good about your walk, sometimes you’re down and discouraged.
Mrs. Noss: Oh yes.
Mr. Noss: I’ve never given it a thought.
:)
How I interpreted their testimonies:
Mrs. Noss: Oh yes, life has it’s ups and downs. That’s just a part of the Christian walk. Sometimes you’ll feel alive and inspired and sometimes you won’t. That’s okay. Accept that as all a part of God’s plan. He uses both the alive times and the dead times for His glory, and for His ultimate plan for you. The growth and the sanctifying process include both of those realities. That’s okay. And here I am, a saint (she wouldn’t say that of course, but that’s how I look at her!), and yet I experience the same ups and downs that you young pups experience. If I can be saintly despite those rollercoaster experiences, you can be, too!
Mr. Noss: I don’t pay attention to those ups and downs. I just keep on going – keep on doing the right thing. I live my life with a focus on God that doesn’t stop to analyze every up and down. I know what I need to do and I do it. God’s commands and promises in the Bible are true no matter what. So I just go right on.
What a fascinating juxtaposition! I was so edified to hear it. There is a place for accepting the ups and downs and seeing them as part of God’s plan, and there’s also a place for ignoring the feelings and the psychoanalysis, and just going right on doing what God has given you to do.
Pretty good, eh? At the end of the service I gave a testimony expressing these things, and after the service Mr. Noss thanked me for my analysis, with a little twinkle in his eye:) I love the Nosses! They add so much to the RI church. I’m so glad I know them!
6 comments:
Mr Noss (to me) is how the other half lives! God bless those people... and those of us who scream all the way up and all the way down!!
It would take an English major and literary analysist to figure out all that those eight words meant! :)
But yes, they were edifying and I love the Nosses too!
Lindsay, I LOVE YOU! Your comment was precious!
And THANKS for this post, Fernie! It was SUPER and it cracked me up. I'm glad this one didn't get rejected by the new blogger regime. I love the Nosses too- even though I don't know them that well. They are the essence of faithfulness. Interesting- Daddy had a similarly themed talk about "going on" today too. Timely and encouraging.
What a super eight word testimony- thanks for blessing us all by sharing it with us!
Great translation, my dear! I would've simply chalked it up to the difference between men and women...and missed a great deal!
Um, linds, do you know what How the Other Half Lives is? Because I can't see the Nosses as beggars on the streets of New York, or single mothers abandoning their babies on the doorsteps of the rich!
Ok, sorry for my fit of literalism. But I use a portion of Riis' book in U.S. History, so my teacher instinct takes over when I hear people using an allusion to it... :-)
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