Exhortation- Umbrella Man

I was recently told a good analogy by my sister-in –law about different kinds of people. Some are like umbrellas and everything runs off of them. Others, though, are like inverted umbrellas and everything runs into them and builds up over time.

We confess sins regularly and that is so that we have a clear conscience before God and men. For some of you, this is relatively easy, as your sins as well as other’s sins against you tend to run off as you move forward. But for some, it is difficult for you to rid yourselves of sins, grievances, bitternesses, or envy because you are that inverted umbrella.

I’d like to tell you to simply turn your umbrella over but it may not be possible. Maybe God gave you that sort of demeanor or maybe it is just too full to flip over. But at the least, you have got to get rid of some of those grievances before they sink you completely.

If you have a good memory about wrongs that others have committed against you, you are probably that inverted umbrella. You have two options. The first, do not be offended. That is, do not let stuff get in your umbrella. But if you are a sensitive person and just cannot seem to keep stuff out of your umbrella, then you have to deal your other option and deal with the sins against you. You can only do this by going to the brother or sister and confronting the sin, so that the relationship can be restored.

Confess your grievances now to God, whether bitterness for a wrong against you, or envy, or even a real and deep wound that should be confronted and has not been confessed to you. Afterwards, you will know if you can let love cover that sin or if you must go and confront that sin to your brother or sister. When you deal with these sins maybe you can get your umbrella light enough so that you might even be able to flip it over.