Big Trials vs. Small Trials:

A flat tire on the way to your big presentation, a new boss that is impossible to please, a big zit on the night of Prom.

Life is filled with trials… BIG & small.

But the way we define the size of the trial often depends upon our age, experience, and maturity.

A zit on prom night looks a lot different to a mother than it does to the high school girl who is getting ready for “the big night”. A new boss that cannot be pleased can be harder to work with to the person whose life is wrapped up in his work than to a person who is daily in prayer for Christians dying for their faith in Asia.

I must be sensitive to the specific circumstances of the trials of others…I do not know all the details of the situation. I, myself, have been consumed and distraught over issues that really were minor. Things that might have been minor to others have been great trials to me. But I am CONVINCED that it is of utmost importance that trials be seen in their proper perspective.

It disgusts me that I consistently see typical American Christians emotionally distraught over life circumstances that seem embarrassingly small to me. They are not small to God, mind you, who has the capacity and desire to care for every hair on our heads…but they are small from the perspective of a Christian who tries to be aware of and supportive of the activity of God and the church in the world. They should not consume our attention and emotional energy.

I won’t try to create some arbitrary rating system for the size of specific trials here, rather I would like to share a few key principles that I believe help us to maintain a proper perspective on our own trials:

• Christians are called to lives of sacrifice. To give their money, their time, their wants, and even their very lives to the work of God on the earth. If we are seeking great things for ourselves, or additional comfort for our already comfortable, well-fed, air-conditioned, rich, home-owning, SUV-driving lives, let us remember those who have none of those things. Let us seek to share our blessings with others, and empathize with those who truly suffer. Let us pray for those who will die today for the sake of the gospel. Let us hold the perspective that we are rich Americans, and that normal people have far less than the vast majority of us.
• Christians are called to lives of service. As Christians, our mandate is to love others through physical acts. Serving others on a weekly basis has an amazing effect on our perspective of our own lives. Don’t just give, don’t just pray, go. Serve others at a food pantry, at a church office, or in a ministry of the church. When you are physically touching people who are suffering physically, emotionally, and financially, you’re worries will fade into the background of your life.
• Christians are called to the lifestyle of soldiers. The exhortation of Jesus and others in the New Testament is the call of a life of focus. Not to marry if you are not called to do so. Not to raise a family unless you are called to do so. Not to get tied down with the everyday worries of life. Owning a home, raising a family, having a car payment…these things might one day prevent you from being able to follow Jesus’ call. Be content to live simply, and be earnest in seeking God’s will when it comes to things requiring long-term commitments and financial obligations.

There is so much more to this…what would you choose to add to this blurb?

My time here at DTS continues to press some important details into my heart and mind. None so much as this: When you preach or teach from the Bible, make sure you are saying what Bible really intended to say!

Too many sermons, books, and teachers have abused the Word of God with “good intentions”, and I strongly desire to help break the cycle. In that spirit, I recommend using good tools in all your Bible study, and avoiding outdated ones. I have purchased the entire volume of work on the Bible by Warren Wiersbe for that very reason…hoping to keep it open next to my Bible whenever I am preparing a sermon, to ensure I am following a clear train of thought.

Let me place the weight of my comments on a far smarter person than I, however. If this blrub peaks your interest, than PLEASE read the post by one of the translators of the NET Bible, on good and bad tools, and see why we are so blessed to studying the Bible in 2010. Read it here.

I must say that when Windows 7 first appeared on the scene for a trial download, I was one of the first to get it and begin experimenting with it at work. I have been anxious to see if Windows could produce an operating system to rival the Mac Os, which by all accounts is much more media friendly and simple than Window XP, the operating system I had at the time. I was not disappointed. The new Windows has been stable and user-friendly since their beta release last year.

When Windows 7 officially launched in October of this year, I was literally drooling over the idea of getting a copy. My only reservations: would ALL my cherished programs work on it? I use Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Video Editing Suite, Bibleworks, and a few other expensive software packages I did not want to have to repurchase. Again, I was not disappointed.

When my laptop began its early descent into the grave with hardware issues, I was sick to my stomach…but the rewards of having Windows 7 has been a great consolation. Below I’ve listed some of my praise for the OS for you, and if you want the long list of tips and tricks I have collected off the web for the new Windows, download that from me by clicking this link Windows_7_tips.

1. The new interface makes the taskbar look a lot less crowded. I have 3-4 programs open at all times, and have a lot easier time switching between them now. Even better, since most computer screens are now widescreen formatted, I am able to place the taskbar on the side of the screen without any problems, giving me another inch of precious vertical screen space across the bottom. (See the attached tips sheet for how to do this: make your taskbar icons smaller too)
2. Windows makes the screen more efficient. I don’t feel as if I have to maximize every program anymore. I can open email, Itunes, or Microsoft Word and not feel as if I need to have the program filling the screen to get things done. This is particularly helpful in that Windows will place a program on exactly half of the screen if you simply drag the program to the side of the screen and let go.
3. Windows 7 is more secure. Gone are the days when sharing my documents on a home network meant anyone connected to that network could modify them. Now I can password protect anything I share. Whew! That was a big worry in days past.
4. Windows is only $30 for students! That’s right, until January 3rd, Windows 7 Home Premium is only $30 for full time students. I just got my copy, do you have yours? Get it here: http://www.win741.com/
5. Windows makes things simple: From operating the Media player to attaching an external monitor, Windows makes the new daily life of computers very simple. I recommend that you purchase it with your next computer: ditch the Mac! and enjoy.

A few considerations when buying a new computer:

1. 32 bit vs. 64 bit: Windows and Mac are both upgrading their systems for higher performance. 64-bit is the term for the newest operating system standard. I won’t get into all the details, but Macs are pretty much 64 bit now, and any PC you buy should also be 64-bit. In a few years, 32 bit computers will be ancient, so I recommend you stay ahead of the technological curve.
2. Graphics cards and RAM matter. If you are buying a new computer, make sure it has 4gb of ram and a good graphics adapter. Windows 7 is very pretty, with lots of 3-D effects. Those effects come at the cost of using more memory and requiring the computer to use its graphics capabilities.
3. You get what you pay for: For that reason, I highly recommend avoiding purchasing a bargain netbook or refurbished system with Windows 7. Spend the money like you are buying a Macbook…if you pay 700-1000, you are going to get a laptop you are very happy with. If you spend $200 for an HP laptop, you may regret your decision. And don’t buy an HP or Acer. They are the lowest quality laptops on the market currently. Stick with Dell, Lenovo, Sony or Toshiba.