By Mark Maher
A phrase I think about is SHAKE IT OFF. Life’s going to come at you pretty fast. One of the things you have to learn how to do is SHAKE IT OFF. How quickly can you let it go and begin to move forward in faith.
Two times that I can think of where the Bible references to “SHAKE IT OFF.”
The first time, was when Jesus told his disciples to go into the various villages nearby, Jesus said to them, ‘Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. 11 And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, SHAKE OFF the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” (Matthew 10:14) Why did he encouraging them to SHAKE IT OFF? It was as if he knew they would get rejected so he was teaching them a strategy on how to keep moving forward in faith.
If you dont learn to “shake it off” quickly, you might allow the disappointment or the rejection to linger longer than necessary. This can paralyze your progress. Faith moves forward. Next village. Keep connecting to people by faith. Christ told us how to do it. He was teaching them resilience. How to not get distracted by the “worries of this world.” (Mark 4:19)
And when Jesus went to Nazareth, His hometown, the Bible says that “they took offense at him.” The word for “offense” here comes from Greek word, skandalon, which means a “stumbling block.” What are the stumbling blocks that keep you from maximizing your faith?
The second time the Bible mentions SHAKE IT OFF was when Paul was bit by a poisonous snake. (Acts 28:3-6) It says that Paul “shook off” the snake and was unharmed, but the islanders suddenly thought that he was a murderer because he got bit, but Paul quickly SHOOK IT OFF, and the islanders immediately realized that he might be a God because he didn’t die from the snakebite, so perceptions changed that quickly. By the end of Paul’s time on Malta, he was able to heal one of the leaders which in turn led to whole island getting healed spiritually, so I guess “all things work together for the good of those who love God and are CALLED according to God‘s purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
Again, you have to shake it off. Don’t hold onto it for too long. “Shake off” the spirit of offense, bitterness, etc. Learn how to let it go quickly, as life is simply too short. It’s a mind game to see how quick I can shake something off, though I know it’s supposed to bother me, but I’ll choose not to let it. Move on, next assignment. Can’t change it even if I wanted to, so “shake it off.”
We have to remain calm even when “the serpent” bites us. Gentleness, peace, patience, love, kindness, self control, joy, goodness all must abound and stay in tact, even when we go through tough times.
1 Corinthians 13:5 also reinforces the significance of love in OVERCOMING the spirit of offense, stating, “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” True love is the ability to bear with one another, even when we are offended, and to remain hopeful and enduring, even in the face of adversity.
For some, I think your phrase should be SHAKE IT OFF, to rid yourself of bitterness, fear, anger, pride, unforgiveness, self sabotage, minimizing self, a complaining spirit, a judgmental spirit. Get rid of it today, you can become a new person today, never look back, for “we walked by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7) Leave everything and move forward into your true calling, the authentic, genuine you designed for Christ and His purpose.
Let your faith roar so loud that you can’t hear what doubt is saying. When you let go, something magical happens, you give God room to work. Simplicity is removing all that is unnecessary so that we can focus on what really matters. When a crisis occurs, sometimes we question why it had to happen? Your faith will be found in your response
