Nothing on earth lasts forever. Forever never lasts in this world. We all talk about forever and dream of it. Everyone believes in it. The truth is we all die one day. That is proof that we aren't meant to live forever, at least our body isn't. Forever only exists with God and our soul. When we are alive on earth we say forever this and forever that, but down here it doesn't have real meaning because forever cannot exist where things die. Forever is in the eyes and hands of God. God holds the keys to eternity. In him Forever finds its real meaning. Forever only begins when we live our life for God. Down here on earth we get a glimpse of heaven and forever, but our real forever only can be reached when we die and pass on to Heaven. We must always remember God holds forever and nothing or no one else does. We must keep focused on the real forever God and Heaven.
1 John 2:17 (NLT) 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. Us Christians time and time again seem to pass up the ones who don't seem worthy of being saved. I have even been guilty of this, but God has changed my perspective. It seems so easy for us to be offended by the unsaved and what they do that is wrong in front of us. The thing is Christ wants us to look much deeper then what we see them doing. Christ wants us to look down deep on the inside of the lost. He wants us to see what he sees : A hurt lost soul that doesn't know how they are living is wrong. He wants us to look past judging them and to see what he sees : a lost soul who needs him. They need to know that God loves them. We must remember we weren't clean and living right when Christ first found us. We were the druggie, the alcohol, The prostitute, The sinner, The convict, etc. The very person we may place judgement on could have been us in our former life. We need to stop and realize God doesn't see people like we do, God see's the heart. God knows the lost need him. God loves them. We should love them too, The very person we could be judging could be the person that God wants to use to help the world in some way. We too once were lost, in the same place as the person we may be thinking of judging. God wants us to love like him, no boundaries, no limitations. we need to make our heart like Christ because we never know what that person we pass by or judge is going through. They could be at the point of salvation and us not know it. We must learn to act and think like Christ. Jesus came to heal not to judge. our job is to be like him and offer a kind word to lost people like him. we are not to ignore them. we are to love them like Christ loved us and saved us. we can love them despite the state they are living in or the lifestyle they are living. we aren't saying we agree with the wrong things they may do. we are saying we love like Christ, unconditional love that is. the lost do not change and get cleaned up to get saved. we did not get cleaned up to get saved. God found us and cleaned us up through the bible over time. We must use the same perspective when dealing with the lost people of this world. we must keep the mindset that god loves them despite how they live. God wants to save them despite what they do. It is only after they receive Christ that he can confront wrong behaviors and the lifestyle they may be living. Change comes through Christ, not the world. We must never portray the image that Christ only loves someone once they get their act together. Christ loves them because that is his very nature. Us Christians must inspire to have that kind of love and mindset. For that is the only way the lost will come to know the true love of the father. the unconditional love that can change a person's heart forever. We must be the ones to tell them the truth. we must be more like Christ. we must break the pattern of judgment and defeat it with the love of Christ. We are Christ's disciples..now it's time we let him use us to tell the lost the truth.. The truth that he loves them and wants to help and save them. It is a free gift and all are entitled to have eternal life through Jesus. We must not begrudge the lost from receiving it. so it's time we tell them the truth about God and his plan for salvation.
Just think about all of this and let God search your heart about it, I know he has dealt with me on it. I think he has message for all of us in this. Pain is something that we all experience a lot in life. Pain can drive us to do pretty crazy things and to act like we shouldn't. If left undealt with Pain can turn to unforgiveness and cause us to want others to suffer for our pain. This my friends is where revenge comes in. I have always heard revenge is sweet, but think about it, is it really? I mean come on seeing others suffer proves nothing. All it proves is another soul is being harmed and in the end the person seeking revenge feels twice as miserable as before. Revenge does nothing good for the soul. Revenge actually taints the soul and causes it to sin. God said himself in Galatians that What a man sows is what he will reap (Some call it Karma, but Karma is actually from Buddhism and Hinduism, which are religions, Look it up sometime), I mean if the maker of the universe claims to cause people to get back to them what they have done to others, shouldn't we be a little more careful. Being revengeful will never satisfy anyone's soul, it only poisons it just like unforgiveness does. We need to stop focusing on causing others pain and let God take care of the situation. We need to stop focusing on misery and focus on giving our pain to God. Only God can take that pain and misery and change our heart and give us peace within. It is all in our minds, If we choose to make others suffer for our pain, our pain will only stay, it won't get better, but worst. This happens because revenge and unforgiveness can never be satisfied, it is like a endless pit. Our mind and soul will never be at ease and peace unless we give our problems, misery, pain, and wrongs to God. Vengeance belongs to God not us. Revenge is not for Christians, Reaping and Sowing is though, so watch your steps and choose to forgive others. If you refuse forgiveness to others God will not forgive you, the scripture say it. Choose to live right and let matters go into the arms of God, for that is when peace will surface in your life and your pain will be washed away.
Galatians 6:7 (NASB) 7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. Matthew 6:14-15 (NLT) 14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. Romans 12:19 (NLT) 19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. "When hope is crushed, the heart is crushed, but a wish come true fills you with joy."
- Proverbs 13:12 (GNT) Hope it is something we all need and want, but at times it seems hard to find. At times in life darkness pulls at us and steals what hope we have. We search and search again for that hope, but it seems nowhere to be found. The struggle isn't that there isn't any hope. but that we have allowed the pressures and struggles of life to steal what hope we do have. During these times we must be strong enough to let hope back in our mind and life. We all have hope within us, but we must find it. God gives us all a measure of hope I believe. It is our choice to whether we add to that hope or let what little hope we have get trampled on and be taken away. During difficult times in life we need to trust God and let our hope not be taken from us. During these struggles we need to let our hope grow and learn to trust God more. Without struggles in life we would never need hope. Negative situations in life is where we find and need hope the most, where it is tested the most. We may be going through situations that seem hopeless, but hope is there it just has to be found. Hope is not lost, it is here and has been all along. Search for hope it is there, it never left. There is always hope remember that. |
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