Jesus had returned to his hometown, Nazareth, the place where He grew up. It didn’t take long before the people began to question just exactly “who” He thought He was. Before long they had decided they had had enough of Him and took Him to the edge of town, to a high cliff, with the intent of pushing Him to His death. Luke describes Jesus’ reaction in 4:30, “But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.” To put it in our terms, “He kept His cool and walked away.”
Rudyard Kipling wrote in his familiar poem of manhood, “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired of waiting, Or be lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise…Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!”
Keeping your cool when all around you is falling apart is an active part of faith. It is an essential part of showing a reliance on God. Here are essential elements to maintaining composure:
1. Accept the fact that people will not always do what you want them to do. They will let you down and disagree with you.
2. Accept the fact that you are not perfect. You will fail. You will lose. You will make mistakes.
3. Put your energy on the present. Focus on what the present needs are. Matthew 6:34, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
4. Whatever you are doing, commit it to God. Your hopes, your dreams, your visions, your thoughts – commit them to God and do not consider the results. Do what you need to do and do it with all your heart; leave the rest to God.
5. Have an eternal vision. Keep your mind and eyes on eternity.
We all have times of frustration and doubt; learning how to deal appropriately is a key element to Spiritual Healthiness. Consider the elements mentioned above in helping you to keep your cool today.
