Mister, Buy This For Me
Persistence and passion become less powerful out of
proper positio. For example during a stay in a distant city
I took the time to visit a department store, hoping to find
some nice gifts for my children. As I walked down a store
aisle, a little girl walked up to me, pulled something off
the shelf, and boldly said, "Mister, buy this for me."
I said, "Little miss, I don't even know you. I'm sorry I
don't know about..."
"Mister" she said, interrupting me in midsentence, "I want
it. Buy this for me."
The situation was getting out of hand, so I said, "Where's
your mommy?" All the while, I was backing up to distance
myself from the distraught young girl and thinking, What if
her mom shows up and blames me?
"I don't how" she said.
"Where's your daddy?"
"Over there."
"Go talk to them," I said, hoping that would end the
discussion.
Evidently I underestimated this little girl's persistence
level because she looked at me as if I had suggested
something totally unthinkable.
"But I want you to buy this for me, mister!" She kept up the
badgering, but it didn't work. She had the persistence-and I
suppose you might say she had the passion-for what she hoped
to possess. Yet she was missing one all-important
ingredient: she lacked the power of position.
I've always had a soft spot for children. Wherever the Lord
takes me, if I'm in Thailand or China, Fresno or Boston, I
hardly ever pass up an opportunity to hold little infants
and interact with children. Even so, there is a big
difference in the way I feel toward children in general and
my children.
Why was I reluctant to buy something for that little girl?
Let me give you a hint: it had nothing to do with whether or
not she was a good girl or the most persistent and brash
little girl I've ever met in my life. My reluctance to
purchase something for her (or for you for that matter) has
everything to do with whether or not she belongs to me.
IF IT WAS ONE OF MY GIRLS, IT WOULD BE DIFFERENT
This concept of belonging births a totally different
valuation process in the heart of a father. If I turned
around and saw that one of my little girls was looking at
something on the shelf, I would have a totally different
attitude and mind-set if she came to me and asked, "Daddy,
could I have this?" One of my pastor friends has a son who
totally understands the power of position. His ploy is to
bring two toys to his father with one in each hand. Then he
holds both of them up to simply ask the question, "Which one
of these do you want me to have, Daddy?"
If we ever hope to understand how God works in our lives and
churches, then we must realize that although God is no
respecter of persons, He is a respecter of position. It is
one thing to make your petition with passion and
persistence. It is another thing to make your petition from
the right position.
The simple truth is, there is more power in the word Daddy
than in the word Mister. Perhaps that is why God's Word
specifically says:
"You did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again
to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him
we cry, "Abba (Daddy, Father." The Spirit himself testifies
with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are
children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with
Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that
we may also share in his glory." Romans 8: 15-17
God's Eyeview p.
65 - 67, Tommy Tenney, From GodChasers.network, The Ministry
of Tommy Tenney
Contact information for this ministry:
GodChasers.network
P. O. Box 3355 Pineville,
LA 71361
USA 318-44-CHASE