Applause, Applause and Protection

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, Hebrews 12:1 Reading some Scripture this morning I was reminded of a message that I watched from Louie Giglio. In it Louie described a child of God leaving her home for the day. He goes on about how the heavenly beings see it. With great excitement, he tells of the joy and applause going on in heaven as the woman gets in the elevator, gets to the parking lot and gets in her car. It’s hilarious and over the top, (remember I did say it was Louie Giglio!) but there’s a great lesson in it. My husband and I were watching a TV show about a fictional former president. At one point the poor man is just over the Secret Service detail. He’s tired of them following him around so he fires them. It takes less than five minutes for him to start to see all that they’ve been doing for him. Reluctantly he takes them back, feeling less intrusion and more protection and encouragement. So it is with us and all the heavenly beings, first and foremost the persons of the Holy Trinity. We get the erroneous idea that we can “do” life on our own. Then we try it and quickly see that it’s HARD! Go back to Louie Giglio. What if we could see, in our mind’s eye, the heavenly hosts cheering us on as we move through our days? Here comes that dreaded conversation. “Oh look at our girl! She’s staying calm. She’s speaking the truth in love! She’s walking away! Go girl!” Or a more mundane task… “She’s putting away the dishes! She’s wiping the counter. She’s feeding the dog! You go girl! Our girl is so awesome!” It’s over the top for sure but if we think about the cloud of witness, the constant beautiful presence of the Holy Spirit, it isn’t over the top or smothering. It’s perfect. Picture yourself in a tough situation or a boring one. Now add the cheering crowd from heaven. Feels pretty good, right? Further, it enables us to live with a more positive attitude and be encouragers to those around us. We have the best support system ever imagined anywhere and far too often we forget that and try to make our own way. Today, at least once, picture that smiling, encouraging, cheering group. Then praise God for His constant, encouraging presence.

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