by Have you ever tried a stunt over and over again and it doesn’t work? After a day passes, have you tried it again and it turns out perfectly? What did you do wrong the first time? Probably, nothing.
It isn’t that you did something wrong. You did it differently, because you were nervous. Stress has a way of boggling the mind. Often, I want to do things perfectly and there is a quiet voice that tells me, “You can’t do that! Why try?”
Stunt: All you need is a very large, thick rubber band. Try to make the rubber band jump from two fingers to two other fingers!
Place the rubber band around the first and second fingers of your right hand. Now, with your left hand, pull out the band a little bit.
Next, curl all four of your right-hand fingers back through the rubber band.
Now, show your hand and the rubber band to a friend but keep the back of your hand toward your friend so the band looks as if it only goes around your first two fingers.
Give another rubber band to your friend.
Say: I bet you cannot put this rubber band around the ame two fingers of your hand.”
When your friend wraps the band around the first two fingers. Quickly open your hand. The band will jump to your third and fourth fingers.
See the rubber band jump to your third and fourth fingers?
Say: “Sorry, You couldn’t do it. Those are the wrong fingers.!”
Say: I tried this stunt over and over again before I could master it. There are other things that I have tried and failed the first time, second time, even a dozen times! It is not because I am not smart. I followed the directions exactly! Some things take a lot of practice.
Were you able to ride a bicycle the first time you tried? Did you belly-flop the first time you dived into a swimming pool? One of the hardest things for me to learn was how to make flour dough rise while I baked bread on a boat. The temperature of the air, the dough, the kind of yeast I used and many other factors contributed to my mistakes but each time, I got a little closer. The mistakes were not perfect loaves of golden bread but they turned into cinnamin rolls, toast or oven baked salad croutons.
Ask: What have you had to practice that took a long time to learn? Have you ever given uup trying then tried it later and it worked? How about, have you ever made a mistake doing something and found something better? For example, you made a wrong turn on a camping trip and found a better place to hike or discovered scenic spot that you never knew about?
Say: I would like to share a parrot story with you that illustrates the point that sometimes, we overlook the obious when things don’t work for us:
A lady goes into a pet store one day. “I’m really lonely,” she says to the clerk. “I need a pet to keep me company.”
“Well,” replies the clerk, “…how about this nice parrot? He’ll talk to you.”
“Hey, that’s great,” says the lady. She buys the parrot and takes him home. The next day, the lady comes back to the pet store.
“You know, that parrot isn’t talking to me yet,” she says.
“Hmm, let’s see,” says the clerk. “I know! You buy this little ladder for his cage. He’ll climb the ladder, and then he’ll talk.” Off she goes with a new ladder. The next day, she comes back again.
“Hey, that parrot still hasn’t said a word,” she says to the pet store clerk.
He thinks a minute.
“How about this little mirror?” he says. “You hang it at the top of the ladder. The parrot will climb the ladder, look in the mirror, and then he’ll talk to you.”
“Okay,” she says.
She buys the mirror and goes home. The next day she is back in the shop.
“I am getting discouraged,” she says. “That parrot still won’t talk to me.”
The clerk scratches his head.
“Let me think., Aha! Try this bell. You hang it over the mirror. The parrot will climb the ladder, look in the mirror, ring the bell, and then he will surely talk to you!”
“All right, I’ll give it a try,” says the lady.
She bought the bell and took it home. The next day she was back and she was very, very discouraged.
“What’s wrong?” asked the clerk.
“My parrot…he died,” she answered.
“Oh, my goodness! I am so sorry for your loss!” exclaimed the clerk. “I have to ask you, did the parrot ever say anything to you?”
“Oh, yes, he said one thing right before he died,” she replied.
“Well, what did he say?”
The lady replied, “He said, ‘Doesn’t that store carry any food?”
Say: Sometimes stunts don’t work , especially animal stunts won’t work if we forget the obvious. In this joke, the bird could not talk because it wasn’t getting any nourishment. That may be the reason it is hard for us to accomplish a task. Be sure to feed the parrot! Feed yourself the right foods, too!
Song
“There’s a dark and a troubled side of life. There’s a bright and a sunny side, too.
When you meet with the darkness and strife, the sunny side you also may view
Keep on the sunny side, always on the sunny side. Keep on the sunny side of life.
It will help you every day it will brighten all your way when you keep on the sunny side of life.” (Merle Haggard)
Scriptural Application:
“Do not be surprised at this fiery ordeal that has come upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing…” 1 Peter 4:12
“…cast all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.” (1 Peter 4:7)
