Chad Perron: Blog

Job 9                                                                                                                                                                 32 He (God) is not a man like me that I might answer him, that we might confront each other in court. 33 If only there were someone to arbitrate between us, to lay his hand upon us both, 34 someone to remove God's rod from me, so that his terror would frighten me no more. 35 Then I would speak up without fear of him, but as it now stands with me, I cannot.
Now there IS someone . . . 
Hebrews 8:6         [...]

I had an experience not too long ago where a friend had the kindness to not hold back what my actions displayed.  I had been impatient and short in my statements while preparing for an event.  I later said to this friend, "I'm sorry, I get a little 'emphatic' sometimes."  I was hoping to cite, "Yeah, I don't like how I do this, but I realize that I do."  This friend's response was to go deeper and point out just exactly how it makes someone feel to hear comments that are quick and disrespectful, and he did it while still offering forgiveness for it.  It truly broke my heart-now I was REALLY sorry.  I needed to hear just how unloving my demeanor and language can be. Thank you Lord for the wounds of a friend!  I also realized from this that I need to ask my friends to be very clear and direct with me so that they know how I respond best to being called out for my sin.  I know that not everyone needs the same approach- some need a gentle arm around the [...]

We have recently seen the destructive power of water and waves.  It's frightening to see what this precious resource can do under the manipulation of natural occurrences.  I thought about how easy it is to make waves: an infant taking a bath inadvertently makes waves by awkward flailings, a pebble dropped into a pond creates ripples that extent far beyond its point of impact.  But how difficult is it to stop those waves and make water calm?  In Mark 4:39 Jesus calmed a storm which was so fierce that his disciples, seasoned fishermen, were afraid that they were going to die in it.  They were in awe of how the wind AND WAVES obeyed His voice.  What we are unable to control with all human thought and effort, the Creator of the Universe, Jesus Christ, tames with his voice.  How easily we make waves and turmoil in our lives-sometimes without even being intentional about it.  He is able to calm any storm raging within [...]

Fear!  The last year for me has been one of fear and anxiety.  With many things happening in our lives (work, family, relationships, financial stress), there is a lot to create anxiety in many of us.  I’m certainly no exception. Not only do I feel my own anxiety, but I also seem to pick up and carry others’ anxieties as well.  I believe I have read every verse in the Bible about fear and anxiety. “Be anxious for nothing …”, “Fear not, …”, etc…but now if someone would only tell my physical body that!  My mind knows, but my physical body seems to have a life of its own. For instance, I can wake up in the middle of the night with not a thought or worry yet feel like I am being zapped by a pulsating electric fence.  I’ve had friends, my husband, and have, myself, prayed for a healing from the physical and emotional effects of anxiety.  And I know God will, I have no doubt, but I do sometimes feel [...]

Finish this statement with me, "Set it, and . . . .”  Ron Popeil summarized how we expect to see things operate in our modern world.  Just plug it in, turn it on, and let it do the work.  I find myself getting frustrated when something isn't working the way I expected, or exactly the way the manual said it would.  I'm finding as time goes on that I have to learn the tools and equipment I purchase and develop an understanding of their peculiarities.  An example of this is a humidifier that we own.  We were going through filters pretty regularly, and they aren’t cheap.  Eventually, we began turning the filter over once in a while so that the wicking end could get a break and soak for a while.  Now we do this twice a day.  Instead of changing a filter every three weeks, it lasts for several months.  Yes, this story is heading toward an analogy about God and our relationship with Him.  At some point, when the Holy Spirit calls [...]