Eyes That Never See; Ears That Never Hear - from On the Anvil by Max Lucado
He's a deadly snake. Mark my words. Satan's snake. Be on your guard.
He's sly and wily. He lurks in eery dark corner and musty hole. He strikes with abandon. The old, the rich, the poor, the young --- all are his prey. He worms his way into every life and seldom misses his target.
And what slyness! We never know when he will strike. When he will creep up, we never know. All we see are the results of his deadly bite: blank faces, nonreflective hearts, questionless minds, empty lives. A trail cluttered with broken hearts and tears.
Who is this snake? Greed? Lust? Egotism? No (even though they are just as deadly). No, I'm unmasking the vilest of hell's vipers --- complacence.
We live in a world plagued by complacence.
We're complacent to hope. Many people settle for a stale,vanilla lifestyle that peaks at age seventeen. Hope? What's to hpe for? Life is a paycheck and a weekend. Nothing more. You'd think we all had blinders. It's like one car after another driving off a cliff, no one daring to object. ike watercolor names painted on a sidewalk...washing away in an August rain.
We're complacent to death. Masked faces at funeral endure the procession; weep at the burial; and then, a few hours later, giggle at the television comic. "The only way to handle death is to accept it as inevitable. Don't question it or defy it. You'll walk away depressed. Close your eyes. Put your hands over your ears. There is no explanation". We stand complacent.
We're complacent to God. Churchgoers pack the pews and sing to the back of someone's head. Fellowship is lost in formality. One, two, three times a week people pay their dues by walking in the door, enduring a ritual, and walking out. Guilt is appeased. God is insulted. Are we so naive as to think that he needs our attendance? Are we so ignorant that we put God in a box, thinking he can be taken in and out at our convenience?
We're complacent to purpose. How in the world can a person be born, be educated, fall in or out of love, ahve a job, be married, give birth, raise kids, see death, cry, scream, giggle, drink, eat, smoke, climb up or down the ladder, retire, and die without ever, ever asking why? Never asking "Why am I here?" Or worse yet, asking why and being content with no answer. History is jam-packed with lives that died with no purpose. Neighborhoods reek with mediocrity. Office complexes are painted gray with boredom. Nine-to-fivers are hypnotized by routine. But does anyone object? Does anyone defy the machinery? Does anyone ask why?
Sometimes I want to stand at the corner of the street and yell, "Doesn't anyone want to know why? Why lonely evenings? Why broken hearts? Why abandoned marriages? Why fatherless babies?" But I never yell it. I just stick my hands in my pockets and stare...and wonder.
The most deadly trick of Satan is not to rob us of answers. It's to steal our questions.
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At the end of the chapter is a guide question, "What is the difference between contentment and complacency?"
Personally, complacency for me brings to mind idleness and/or lack of motivation/inspiration...state of being satisfied at the current situation because of simply wanting to do nothing more. When I read this chapter, it strikes me that Satan doesn't want us to challenge and to analyze , thus he "steals our questions". He suggests lies such as "I'm not harming anybody so it's okay this way". But if we stay "this way", we stagnate. Satan can twist complacency in many ways to make it look like contentment.
Complacency in God is being "lukewarm" in faith. God warns us of this in Revelations 3:15-16, I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So because you are lukewarm --- neither hot nor cold --- I am about to spit you out of my mouth."
On the other hand, contentment is exemplified clearly by no other than the apostle Paul when he shared that he had learned the "secret" of being content in any and every situation...he can do all things through Christ who gives him strength (Philippians 4:11-13). His contentment is in Christ --- in his promises, in his power, and in his faithfulness. Paul's contentment did not STOP him from doing God's work. Instead he kept running the race. He kept pressing on toward the goal (Philippians 3:14).
Contentment therefore, is also not an excuse to stop. Instead, contentment should urge us to continue, knowing that the Source of our strength cannot be exhausted. Let us share this "secret" to everyone. God bless!
Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Romans 12:11
posted by schlieren at 12:05 PM
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