Refusing Rescue

There is a Television  program that is on here in America, where a man,  who is an experts in the food service industry is invited to come to failing business  establishments. He then  reviews how they conduct, or rather don't conduct business  and then proceeds to help them,  that is , to  rescue and salvage their failing business.

What is astounding is the conflict that arises when this expert, who has either owned or lunched multiple highly successful businesses in the food service industry , encounters resistance from the very people he is there to freely help.

The various business owners at times are combative uncooperative, stubborn and at timers belligerent. The owners of failing business just do not want to let go of the ways they are conducting their businesses which have proven completely unsuccessful and placed them in a position of being on the verge  closing .

Often the business owners have invested large sums of money into the failing business, to the point of bankruptcy, yet   nothing is working.  It is when they after reaching this point of need they call for this expert who comes and freely offers to help, yet they almost always resist his freely given advice.
At time he seems more interested in their success than they do. He will at ,times offer some blunt  evaluations of  business owners personal practices and conduct which have caused for much of their quandary  that are finding them selves in. Often they will recoil and be defensive and even self justifying .

What is unfortunate ,is ,  that  this expert knows what he is talking about and understands their problems better than they do. They need to heed his input. He is there to rescue them out of their bad situation.

Often after much conflict and resistance , and a time when the owner is finally  placed in a personal conversation with this expert  that the business owners will  come to see that this expert has their best interest at heart and is there to help and rescue them  and to salvage their business and succeed;  if they will just receive his free help.

When they set aside their pride,  stubbornness and self justification and accept what is freely offered them and heed the input of this expert and allow him to make the needed changes, which often requires a complete change in the appearance and practices and most of the time even the name of the business,    they find that,  in the end ,  even after some stress in placed upon them and their staffs that , that this expert was right all along.

Generally  at then end of each program,  there is short update on the businesses and owners , each time that the business owners followed  the input of this expert they have founded them selves positioned for success and  now succeeding  they have been rescued. They have been shown a better way of  conducting their business.They have a whole new life to their business and it works.

No Market

 On one episode  there was a business owner who had their establishment dressed in an illogical theme  that had no appeal to the market where their establishment was located.  The owner  and the  business were only a short time from closing down and being out of business. In the location which  they  were located in  had the environment to succeed , but the establishment with it's theme simply would not be sustained, there was no market for them as they were.

This owner, in desperation called to the expert who came and  reviewed her , the staff and the whole establishment in general. He concluded that the whole theme of the business, and the poorly trained staff  including this woman's' self willed husband , were the  leading demises of the business.  When the expert  shared his conclusions with the owner and staff there was conflict, they argued and resisted,  justified themselves and let him know that in spite of his expertise in the industry  , they thought him to be wrong.

Guest were invited in to see how the staff preformed under pressure. In a short amount of time it became evident that they had a dismal failure on their hand. They were ill prepared  for the test, ill trained, ill equipped and no leadership, as the guest went away disappointed. How they conducted business did not work . 

After the evening was concluded the expert reviewed how they did. The owner still justified them her self. Many of the staff could see that a change was need and hoped that she would agree to the changes.

 Changes But Not Changed 

After some tenses discussion with the expert she agrees to allow the changes. The expert oversee the transformation of the  moves forward in the end he has freely offered and provided for  her a renovataion and better positioned the business to capitalize on the market.

The staff was enthusiastic and liked the changes and they could see the opportunity that was before them, there was chance to rescue this business.The expert's changes were implemented, there was a complete change undertaken. A new name, new everything  it was "born again" as a business.

Guests were then, again invited in,  the place was  filled with genuinely pleased customers who asserted positively that they  will return.  It looks as if   all would be well. The  potential is great , there is now nothing to stop them from succeeding.

But,  rather than embracing the all new life of her business;. the owner  was  unhappy and clings to the her past ideas as to how it should be, she liked her old theme , which was apparent to everyone  obviously  not working. But she  and wanted to hold on to it, even though it  produced little profit. She becomes negative.

At the end of the episode it is reported that she walked away form what was freely given,  it was her's  there was nothing to stop her from having it , but,  her  own unwillingness to receive it,  and is now back to facing a bleak future.
There was change but she was not changed. She refused to be rescued. All the remodeling and name changes was merely cosmetic. There was no transformation of  herself . She and her business has walked away from being rescued. At the end of the episode the update said that she returned to her old theme and things were not going well.

A Lesson For All of Us.

 

What can we learn from this?  The ideas which govern the business of our lives often lead us to be on the brink of failure and closure.  Humanity needs the help of an expert,  One Who knows the industry of living  and how things best operate  for success in life.   That expert who knows the industry of living is Jesus Christ.

Jesus however is more than just a expert on "moral and ethical" living . Jesus is more than  just a self help teacher ( and the Bible  which speaks of Jesus, is more than a self help book, though some treat is as one) ,  or One Who teaches strategies for living or positive thinking  or practical philosophy.

Jesus is life itself and the Creator of all things.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made In him was life; and the life was the light of men."John:1:14

This One Who designed and brought into being all things came to us , to rescue us and transform us, and the businesses of our lives.

"and the Word became flesh"(14)

He has come to us and and offers to rescues us , if we will but freely receive it. This life that Jesus offers us is a life which we could never accomplish on our own. It is His life in us. He is our life as Paul wrote.

"When Christ, who is your life, ." Colssians:3:4

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."Galatians:2:20


Jesus is our very life and if we will but freely  receive it from Him He will  do more than just give us a new look or upgrade to our existence , Jesus ,like the a fore mentioned expert will give us an all new life, we can experience being  " born again".   Even to the point of giving us a new name. We share in His son ship. This can be ours freely if we will just freely receive it. A new name as children of God. These changes however only reflect what God has made true for us in Jesus, they more than cosmetic.

 "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" 1John:3:2

"To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knows saving he that receives it." Revelation:2:17

This tells us that we are being more than renovated we are all new, "born again" . Now we are now positioned to share in all that is our Lord's except His deity.

"And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together" Romans:8:17

Jesus has given us  all  a new life that is made to take us into eternity.

 Won't Let Go

Unfortunately ,we can  find that at times , we are  like the owner who did not want to let go of old theme  which produce little or no results, we want to keep the old theme of our lives as she did.  We can't put new wine into old skins. It will not work.

"No one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost and the skins as well; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins."Mark:2:22

Our old ways need to be let go of, left behind us we need to receive from Jesus all that He offers us, it is freely given if we will but freely receive it. Jesus offers us a whole new theme for our lives this new theme will bring us success, he knows for He lived it, and is it.   Jesus has positioned us for the best possible outcome that of  eternity with Him.

We need to embrace all that is offered us and  not to be stubborn as the owner whose theme was leading to failure. Jesus is the expert that truly knows the industry of life. Jesus has come and provided rescue for humanity.  Jesus understands all our problems better than we do, we need to heed Jesus' input. Some sadly will refused to hear and accept  what is given ,  and walk away from the cross of our Lord instant on their ways....this leads only to heart ache and failure.... Please do not refuse to be rescued ..Amen 

Rev.Todd Crouch, Pastor

The Fountain of Life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion
2101 Old National Pike.

Washington, Pennsylvania.   www.gcfountainoflife.org

The Fountain of Life is heard  on the RKP Radio Network 1710 and 1670 AM in Washington and North Franklin ,and 1790 AM  in the Arden Fair Grounds area of Washington Pennsylvania, and on 1710 AM in Bentleyville and Monongahela, Pennsylvania. And online around the world at www.rkpradio.com