All in God

Are you dying because of the sin in your life? Perhaps you say no, but do you say this too quickly, having become so accustomed to the subtle sins that you hardly notice them? Our bold sins make an impression on us, and frighten us, but the tiny sins often pass by unnoticed, and yet kill our faith none the less... dragging our faithfulness down like exhaustion drowns a swimmer; slowly draining him of energy until at last his head slips beneath the water.

Where do you make your home, and why? Is there a certain spiritual place that you simply visit from time to time, or have you found a place where God is, and made this your residence? Sometimes we live in a location because it suits our physical needs, or maybe because it is aesthetically pleasing and beautiful, but we should make our home where God is. We should never stray far from where our spirit converses with God.

Are you content and happy whatever your circumstances are, and wherever in life you find yourself? Do you find yourself equally at ease in a shack or a mansion? Jesus could dine in fine houses, speak to high priests and magistrates, or He could sit with the common people of the world; even the thieves, and prostitutes. What He felt about Himself wasn’t predicated upon how the world viewed Him, but how His Father saw Him. Paul was the same, and we should be as well.

On the day when victory has first been won, and we are just now saved and kneeling at the altar before Jesus, it is easy to sing of Him and give Him the glory He deserves. With our salvation just now secured, and the emotion of the moment fresh in our hearts we nearly burst with joy and long to carry Him on our shoulders, and in our hearts. But eternity is a long time and our emotion is known to fade, so how well will we glorify Him as we walk into the foreverness? Will the newness wear off, and the glory surrounding Him grow dim?

Over the course of our lives we will have many needs and we would like them all fulfilled well in advance so that we will not want, or worry about tomorrow. As human’s we want to fill a storehouse, or receive enough money in our bank account to make it through the toughest years of our lives, but that is not how God provides for us... He wants us to come to Him each day for that day’s provision.

It has often been said, and it is true, that we come closest to God when we are in the midst of our suffering... so, how is your life at this moment? Are things going exceptionally well for you? Is your day to day life bountiful, and you find yourself struggling with little to pray for? Perhaps it is time for a good cry! Maybe the tears and sweat of your prayers need to be fed by an emotional response to something dear to you... love is a great example. There is no cry so satisfying in its release and restoration than that of a broken heart.

We have paintings and drawings of Jesus, and there are representations of him made into statues and crucifixes, but none of these were made while He lived, or by anyone who actually saw Him. All of these are conjecture, or were made as the result of an artist’s imagination. Although it is true, that no firsthand image was made, it can still be said that there are millions upon millions of paintings, photographs, statues, and busts, of Jesus in existence... so how is this so without creating a graven image; a golden calf?

Unless we die of some tragic accident or illness, each of us will find ourselves at a point where the strength of our body will have reached its summit, and the slow decline towards death will have begun. We jokingly call this being “over the hill” but isn’t it wonderful to know that while the aging of our bodies looks like a bell curve, our spiritual life is an ever rising inclined plain. Our transitory physical nature is giving way to achieving eternal life through Jesus Christ.

When times are hard in your life do you think that God has walked away from you, and abandoned the gifts He gave you through Jesus Christ? Do you think that the promise of salvation, His protection, and provision has been reneged on? Well that couldn’t be further from the truth. You see, God’s promises and callings last forever, and remain forever with you as well. When the easy times turn hard, and you suffer, continue to look all the more to God.

Do you have enough humility, faith, and confidence in God, to hand your problems over to Him? Or, perhaps you are just someone who worries over every trouble, all troubles, yours, theirs, the world’s, and just can’t let them go. Do you realize that when you do this you are damaging yourself, and that you are harming the temple of the Holy Spirit within you in stressing this way? To God none of your issues or worries presents any challenge whatsoever? So why do you shoulder them yourself?

What will this year bring you in regards to life, and your faith? Will you continue living here on earth as you know it now; filled with challenge, the saving grace of Jesus, and the comfort of the Holy Spirit, or will you cross over Jordan to rest in God the Father? Will you suffer new hardships in this world, and obtain new heights of faith by the work of the Spirit in you, or will this year be free from turmoil, and your path made straight? Will you eat manna here in the desert, or the milk and honey of heaven beyond? Are you afraid of what lies ahead for you this year... well fear not!

Today is Christmas Day, and all of Christianity is celebrating the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, but on this day, and at this time, we are waiting once again, not for His birth, but for His triumphant return. Yet, in His absence He has sent another... the Holy Spirit. He is our helper, and declares to us the truths that are of our Lord Jesus, and the Holy Father. Have you opened your eyes to Him?

I realized as I sat quietly in my living room chair, that I was mourning much more than the death of a president, but also the passing of a sense of goodness and honor, that in my youth symbolized the United States, and that made our flag venerable; our country and her values worth dying for. I Looked at this goodness, and the noble cause of freedom, through eyes filled with tears and realized that it all poured out from our exercise of faith, and how if that faith could be destroyed then the rest of those things we once valued so deeply would surrender themselves quietly.

Are you living for the here and now? So many people go through life looking at the world as if what were happening at this instant in their life was of the utmost importance. They say that they plan, but they are making plans for tomorrow, and for how they will live out their life... seeing no further than the grave. God wants so much more for us than that; He wants to spend eternity with us.