The saying goes: “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater”. I think most of the world, today, lacks belief in, or understanding of, this wisdom. Additionally, I fear most are not aware there, also, needs to be an addendum to this maxim – but do throw out the bathwater.
Mankind’s tendency is, too often, to throw the baby out with the bathwater. A situation is difficult, so the way out is to abandon the entire endeavor. The good is tossed out, or abandoned, so as to not have to persevere and overcome a negative. What is of value is lost because there is a price tag instead of a pre-paid gift card attached to it.
The greatest of treasures are received by withstanding difficulty, enduring hard work, holding faithfully to the reward at the end of an accomplished goal and, above all, trusting God to surmount the treacherous mountains needed to be hurdled to gain His promised blessings. However, too often, mankind tosses aside God’s intended gifts under the entitled premise that all should be given not achieved.
Granted, it is easier to let blessings go down the drain than to submerge oneself in the challenge of swimming upstream to conquer opposition and attain a dream. Today, it has become tragically common for humans to throw away their dreams in order to drown the hard work and struggles necessary to achieve a dream.
As sad as the above scenario is, one other is worse; and this storyline is becoming common as society takes on a “woe for me” attitude. The dream (baby) is being tossed out, but the dysfunctional chaos (bath water) is not. It’s almost becoming a trophy to remain swallowed up in defeat and cry victim, over fighting for victory and abandoning the snare of self-pity. It’s time for all of God’s children to realize the ramifications of throwing the baby out and keeping the bath water are totally contrary to a Believer’s heart. For proof, we need only look to Scripture.
Hebrews 10: 35-39 (ESV) confirms “Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, ‘Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.”
Thus, next time any of us are about to get caught up in the web of the baby and bath water adage, let us remember that the promise of God’s words sets us free, leads us through all challenges and delivers us to all blessings.
Uplifted in a Broken Down World 