"BEING ACCUSED FALSELY" ~ Daily Reflections

BEING ACCUSED FALSELY "Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. 'Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven...' (Luke 6:22-23, NIV). I read a story about a concert held in Philadelphia. One of the movements featured a flute solo that was to be played as if coming from a distance. The conductor had instructed the flutist to stand off stage where he was to count the measures precisely in order to come in at the exact time, since there could be no visual contact between the conductor and the soloist. On the performance night when the time came for the flute solo, the flutist began exactly. The fine, lilting notes floated out beautifully. Suddenly there was a pinching sour note and the soloist was silent. The conductor was outraged and at the end of the piece he rushed off stage to find the poor flutist. The player was prepared. "Maestro," he said, "Before you say anything let me tell you what happened, but really, you're not going to believe it. You know I came in accurately, and everything was going beautifully, when suddenly, this enormous stage hand ran up, grabbed away my flute, and pushed me back, saying, "Shut up, you idiot! Don't you know there's a concert going on out there?" I'm sure that every one of us has been blamed for some mistake that wasn't our fault or been accused falsely for something we didn't do. It can hurt deeply. And then so many people in so many parts of the world are condemned, tortured, and even put to death, because of their Christian faith. Suggested Prayer: "Dear God, please help me to be Christ-like if and when I am accused falsely, criticized when I have done my best, and condemned for my faith in you. Help me to so live that people will always see Christ in me, and where called for please give me the grace I need to survive gracefully. Gratefully in Jesus' name. Amen." ~~Dick Innes~~