Not Without Permission

As seen in the HEARTbeat and the Village Voice

“Not Without Permission”

            We are taught from a young age to ask permission.  “Mom, can I have another cookie?”  “Dad, can I go over to Tommy’s house and play?”  This courtesy may have been ingrained in us.  Think about it, if we just set out on our own, how would our parents or those responsible for us know where we were?  Contrary to this premise, there were times when we were told, “Go outside and play and don’t come back until the sun sets!!”

            No matter the rules of the house, the rules of the school were set.  “May I go to the bathroom?” was heard every day.  We had to ask permission to go anywhere in the school.  It’s as if they were tracking our every move.  Looking back over my childhood, I can understand why someone would want to make sure I was where I was supposed to be!  Not that I was a bad kid, but of course trouble had its way in finding me.

            As adults, do we still ask permission of others to do things?  Yes, we do.  Traveling down the interstate, we use our turn signals to ask permission.  If the traffic is heavy and we need to move into another lane but there isn’t immediate room, we signal our intentions.  Basically, we are asking permission of the other driver to move into the other lane.  If we don’t ask permission, then we set up the environment for the number one cause of road rage!  Yes, the number one cause of road rage is not using your turn signals but just jerking your car or truck over in front of another vehicle!

            How happy are you today?  Do you have joy in your life?  You may be going through something which causes your joy to ebb, and you find it hard to put a smile on your face.  It may be an illness or one of the other major life stressors.  There is a test called the “Holmes-Rahe” stress test which measures the amount of stress you’ve experienced over the last twelve months.  If you are consistently over a specific score, your body can experience the physiological effects of prolonged stress.

            But what about your spiritual life?  Do you have joy or are you stressed out?  We can give up our joy by allowing ourselves to get emotionally down or giving up in the face of adversity.  Jesus said it wouldn’t be easy following Him.  As a matter of fact, picking up a cross daily and denying self isn’t in line with our human nature.  We also have the enemy who wants to rob our joy?  Why?  A sad Christian is an ineffective Christian.  Imagine telling someone about Jesus looking like your dog just got ran over!  Your words wouldn’t be convincing, would they?

            This week, resolve to keep your joy.  When something happens to you that might get you down, say to yourself, “Not without my permission am I giving up my joy.”  When Satan tries to steal your joy say, “Not without my permission.”  Walking in the Spirit is a joyful place to be.  In doing so, you are the only one who can give permission to have your joy taken from you!  It’s yours to keep and enjoy, in the Lord.