roses in my heart

Me - A Fluffed Up Rabbit?

A funny thing happened when we got the mail the other day. The spring newsletter for Breakforth came and it had an amazing article in it from Brian Doerksen that spoke to my husband quite powerfully. So Les read it aloud to me, and God definitely was saying some stuff to both of us through it (...I will share more about that another day). But then when he was finished and I was thinking about what he read, I flipped through the newsletter myself and stumbled upon an article by Ken Davis. Ken was not someone I knew much about before last year's conference, but during his main-stage presentation last year, God used Ken to remind me that "He ADORES (me) you." So with that thought in mind, I read Ken's article. It started out like one of those funny little stories that get emailed around that has a mushy point at the end. Only the point at the end wasn't mushy, but it was something I needed to hear. It wasn't a comfortable thing to hear and yet my soul took comfort in it. Now I need to figure out what, if anything, God wants me to do about it...or if He just wants me to be and see what He intends to do about it. Here's the article... (oh, and don't worry, I haven't been fueding with any neighbours lately, and I certainly haven't been fluffing up any rabbits?!;)

A woman happened to be looking out the window of her home one day. She was horrified to see her German Shepherd shaking the life out of the neighbor’s rabbit. Her family had been quarreling with these neighbors; this was certainly going to make matters worse. She grabbed a broom and ran outside, pummeling the pooch until he dropped a rabbit now covered with dog-spit — and extremely dead.

After a moment’s consideration, the woman lifted the rabbit with the end of the broom and brought it into the house. She dumped its lifeless body into the bathtub and turned on the shower. When the water running off the rabbit was clean, she rolled him over and rinsed the other side. Now she had a plan. She found her hairdryer and blew the rabbit dry. Using an old comb, she groomed the rabbit until he looked pretty good. Then, when the neighbor wasn’t looking, she hopped over the fence, snuck across the backyard, and propped him up in his cage. No way was she taking the blame for this.

About an hour later, she heard screams coming from the neighbor’s yard. She ran outside, pretending she didn’t know what was going on. “What’s happened?” she asked innocently. Her neighbor came running to the fence. All the blood had drained from her face. “Our rabbit, our rabbit!” she blubbered. “He died two weeks ago, we buried him - and now he's back!”

Had the neighbor poked the rabbit or tried to play with him, she would have discovered
the truth: The rabbit was dead. And playing with a fluffed-up dead rabbit isn’t much fun.

The same is true with fluffed-up dead people. One of the disadvantages of living in an affluent society - meaning most of us - is that it’s too easy to get dead and buried before we’re dead and buried. We clutch our material possessions and social status tightly. We’re afraid to take risks, stand out in a crowd, or do anything that could make us look different. In a world of people whose first priority is to maintain the status quo, simply looking alive is too dangerous.

I once spoke with a news anchorman who hated nearly every aspect of his job. When I asked him why he didn’t quit, he said he’d come too far to turn back now. To search for something more significant in life would mean taking a pay cut and relinquishing a few job perks. So every day he gets up and heads for a job he hates, so he won’t lose what he’s gained. And just what has he gained? It sounds like a fluffed-up dead rabbit to me. All over North America people remain in jobs they hate so they can buy stuff they don’t need to impress people who don’t care.

God created you for so much more than that. Could it be time for you to take a deep breath and really live again? Take some risks. God's plan for your life was never about being propped up in a cage. I’ve met dozens of people who finally trusted God and made their escapes. Some changed jobs; some changed attitudes; some took the initiative and summoned up the courage to live out their convictions. There are some who are living with fewer financial resources than before, but they’re experiencing an excitement and a renewed faith they never knew was possible. The renewed fire in their lives leaves no doubt they’re alive.

Jesus is about life. If you feel as if you’ve been shaken, hosed off, and propped up to dry, chances are it's time to take a look around. God wants you to live. People will be delighted an amazed that you’re back.
“He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose”. -
Jim Elliot

This is an excerpt from Ken Davis’ book, Lighten Up!