A TOUCH OF GLASS
OK, I admit it, this is a weird story. If you're not into weird, please escape while you still can. Now that I have that out of the way, let me recount for you this "biting" tale. Somehow, during a visit with a neighbor, we got onto the subject of the weird things that people do. In case you're wondering, yes, this is a normal topic for me! Now on to the tale of the infamous shot-glass-eating-man. Yes, that's right the shot-glass-eating-man (don't try this at home, kiddies). It seems that my neighbor, many years ago, had a job delivering shaved ice to various "establishments" in his area. (Why ice has to shave I'll never know, but all that's beside the point.)
One day he was in this particular establishment when he overheard a rather interesting conversation. Patron #1 said to patron #2, "So I hear you eat shot glasses." "Yep," came the reply. To this, patron #1 inquired further, "How much will it cost me to see you do it?" "A shot, the glass it comes in, another beverage to wash it down and $10.00," came the reply. Obviously, this man had had this conversation many times before, and he had formed a detailed pay structure for services rendered. Without hesitation the man requested the necessary implements and placed a $10.00 bill on the counter. By this time, my neighbor had decided that the shaved ice had to wait. After all it's not every day you see a man eat a shot glass or die trying.
For the next twenty minutes this man performed. Working his way around the glass in a circular fashion he began the painstaking process. Each piece was chewed with the patience and precision of an artisan creating a work of art. The last to go was the thick glass on the bottom. With jaws of steel, this final hurdle was jumped and the man victoriously pocketed the $10.00. My neighbor was twenty minutes late for the rest of his deliveries, but richer for the experience, but not really.
The first thought that came to my mind when I heard this story was, "How did this guy learn to do this?" Most importantly, how did such masticational maneuvering even occur to him? Did he just wake up one morning and say, "Hey, I bet I can eat a shot glass?" Did he learn his craft from a past glass master? Did he come from a long line of shot glass eaterists? I guess we'll never know, but the question is what do we learn from such a feat?
What we learn is that we're capable of doing more than we think we can, but it takes a step of faith. No matter what the circumstances are around this man's amazing abilities, at one point he had to take one step forward and try something dangerous for the first time. This man had to take an ordinary object and do something extraordinary with it, he had to take a big bite of the unknown and believe that he could do it.
Friends, that's the kind of attitude that God can use in His people! God wants to take the ordinary objects of our lives - our skills, our relationships, our possessions - and trust him enough to take a step of faith and do something extraordinary with them. With Gideon, it was his few men, some clay pots, torches and some trumpets (Judges 7). The result was the defeat of thousands of Midianites. With Shamgar, it was an ox goad that took out 600 Philistines (Judges 3:31). Then, there was Samson with the jawbone of a donkey (Judges 15:15). Finally, Jesus chose twelve rather ordinary men whom God used to change the world. The bottom line is that we can never bite off more than we can chew if we do it by faith!
Points to Ponder
Have you stepped out in faith lately? Have you gone past the ordinary and tried to do something extraordinary for God? Have you tried to do something that you can't do in your own strength alone?
What is the ordinary object you can use to do the extraordinary? Your talent at speaking? You're ability to teach? Your interest in helping shut-ins? Your cooking abilities with the new neighbors down the block? Maybe it's just taking time to go out for a coffee, or play a game of tennis?
The more you step out in faith the easier it gets. Do it enough and the impossible becomes the expected.
Who is that one person you can encourage to step out? How can you help them to step out?
Prayer
Dear Lord, Thank you for using our ordinary and making it extraordinary. Thank You for empowering us to touch lives, and make a difference. Lord, help us to take that step of faith and use our talents to Your glory. Help us to live by faith and grow in faith. Give us courage and creativity, help us to see what we can do in Your strength. Help us not to become comfortable in our faith and casual about our servanthood. In Jesus Name, Amen
