Jack Cavanaugh's WORD FORGE

An Unpopular, Invaluable Life Lesson

Stress. It’s part of living. Has been since Adam and Eve stood over the lifeless body of their son, knowing their other son was the murderer.

Not long ago an author was doing the talk-show circuit promoting his latest book which was based on a startling new study that revealed a world-wide epidemic of stress.

Shocking.

You want to hear something shocking?

What do you do when you’re under a lot of stress? Most people pray for relief, right? But what if God responded, “I know you’re under a lot of stress lately. I’m the one causing it.”

That’s basically what God told Jeremiah when He sent the prophet to observe a potter (Jeremiah 18:1-6). In this object lesson, God said He was the potter, we’re the clay. And the Hebrew word used to describe what the potter does to the clay? Distress. The potter distresses the clay when he—

• pounds out the impurities;
• molds the clay into all manner of unnatural shapes the clay would never know if not for the potter;
• then, after all this distressing, he places the clay in the fire.

 The result? The clay emerges as a suitable vessel for the Master’s use. Without the distress, the clay would forever be nothing more than a useless lump.

That’s the unpopular part of the lesson. The invaluable part is embracing it. As did—

Peter: Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. (I Peter 4:12)

James: Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4)

Paul: …we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us… (Romans 5:3-5)

 

Be patient in failure,

Encouraged by setbacks;

It’s the struggle that makes us strong.

 

Earning a Rep

Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas
(which means Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned
and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.
                                                                                                  — Acts 4:36-37

HIS NAME WAS JOSEPH, but everyone knew him as The Encourager. It was a name born of a reputation.

It was Barnabas who took a chance on the newly converted Paul, ushering him into the midst of a roomful of disciples. It was a gutsy move. If Paul's conversion had been a ruse Barnabas would have handed over Christianity's core leadership to their greatest enemy, and the name Barnabas would be synonymous with Benedict Arnold. But Barnabas did what Barnabas’s do. He encouraged. If he hadn’t, there might not have been an Apostle Paul.

Eventually Paul overshadowed Barnabas. There is no indication that Barnabas was troubled by this. I think that's what I like best about him. It has been said that the hardest instrument to play is second fiddle. But without second fiddle players, there is no harmony.

What’s in a nickname? Or, to paraphrase Shakespeare:
Stinky, by any other nickname, would smell just as bad.

Other disciples had nicknames. Most notably, James and John, who were dubbed the Sons of Thunder. Maybe the fact that they asked Jesus to call down fire from heaven and destroy a Samaritan village for refusing them passage had something to do with it.

A nickname can be a shortened version of your proper name, an endearment, or a term of derision. While your proper name is given to you by your parents long before you begin exhibiting distinguishing characteristics, a nickname is often bestowed by others based on observation (rightly or wrongly).

Do you have a nickname? Are you happy with it? If not, why not try this — make up a nickname for yourself, a name you would like others to call you. Don't tell anybody. Then, start acting in a way that is true to the nickname you've chosen for yourself. Be patient. It takes a while to earn a reputation, to earn the right to wear your nickname. But with persistence, trust me, that day will come.