A demonstration speaks much more than a thousand words!

I remember the exact moment my dad made me face his love when I had been very unlovable!  I was 15, delivered papers at 4am in the morning. It was winter, which made it no fun. He usually left home every day at 5am, but when I got home, He was still there, I was cold and hungry, and I asked him how to make grits. (Now I laugh, but then I did not know it was so complicated. 1. Pour grits in bowl. 2. Boil water. 3. Pour boiling water into boil with grits. Stir!) 

Rocket Science!!! 

To continue…he said he was late and had to leave but would show me tonight. I was a brat, and as he walked down the hall to kiss my mother goodbye, she was already bedridden and quite ill, I flipped him off! (Believe me, this is not a story I am proud of, but the point is huge) I forgot that at the end of the hallway was a full-length mirror. I saw myself, standing there with my arm straight out, my dad looking at me in the mirror. He turned and looked at me, went in and kissed mom, walked past me into the kitchen and made me grits! THAT was one of the longest days of my life! 

When he walked in the door, I was on him. I was on my knees holding his legs, crying, and begging for his forgiveness. He forgave me and we hugged.  

This may be why Rom 5:8 was my first memory verse and one of my favorite Scriptures to meditate on. 

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 

I love the Christmas stories of shepherds, the manger, swaddling clothes, but for me Rom 5:8 is the Christmas story. 

You and I are separated from God from the moment of conception because of a choice mankind made when they were walking with God. Sin caused that separation, and God is not a man that He should lie! The penalty (payment) of sin is death (separation of our spirit from our physical body and God) 

Yet God chose not to leave us without hope. He chose to make the payment needed to allow (remember “allow”) us to bridge the gap between Him and us.   

God extended to us what He possesses, a will that can make choices! To take that away from reality denies the Scriptures and Who God is. Man, good men, so desire to explain God to man that they get trapped making man made theories that men can understand. If a finite mind can explain God, then God is a finite god. God chooses all of His children, and we choose Him! If I can explain that then I am equal to Him, which I am not! 

The So What: Just a challenge – Make this Christmas a single focus – God demonstrated how much He loves YOU! The penalty is paid, and IF you ALLOW God’s sacrifice to pay the debt of your sin, you can experience His Eternal life here and now!

Investment or Waste? It’s Your Call.

A life that was controlled by drugs, selfish ambition, looking out for #1…even if it means stepping over or on someone to succeed…it goes on. I know a guy like that, BUT now he cares for others more than himself, he desires to leave every situation better than he found it! 

I met this guy in prison and shared the Love of God with him. The transformation was amazing! The description of how selfish he was would match mine, just the drug would have been alcohol. 

Not only does John 3:16 communicate that God’s Love “Gave”, it also makes clear that our future can be secure! 

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 

How sad is it that the enemy has deceived so many to believe that when Scripture speaks about “Eternal Life” it is talking about something that happens after our body ceases to live! This is a lie from the pit of Hell! God is Life! When an individual enters into a relationship with God, eternal life begins that moment!

Consider the words used:

Perish - “apoletai” ἀπ-όλλῡμι to destroy utterly, kill, slay, demolish, waste, 

Eternal life -  aionion - αἰώνιος    ζωή – zoen – Unending, Everlasting, For all time.

Dor. ζωά; Ion. ζόη, Dor. ζόα; Aeol. ζοΐα; ἡ: (ζάω):—a living, i.e. ones means of life, substance. 

I am 67 now, with 3 significant health issues. Earthwise, God has blessed me with a great wife, 3 great kids and 10 grandchildren. There, I am content. Heavenwise, I have not accomplished much, and failed far too many times to want to recall, and I would not be too content with my life. However, because I know that the little I could do, sharing the Truth concerning God’s Love and sacrifice for us, and witnessing the impact that some of the folks I shared with have had on this world, I do rejoice in the life my heavenly Father gave me! Being even a tiny part of what God has been doing in this world allows me to participate in eternal things!

Scripture states we exist forever…contemplating that…one Billion years from now how will you view this “spit in the wind” called life and how you used it? Will the thought be “Invested!” or “Wasted”? You, and you alone, control that. God intends you to make the most of it, but He won’t force you, because true Love includes freedom!

The so what: Allow yourself time to consider this Christmas how much your Creator Loves you and desires you to succeed in what really matters in this life! You don’t have to quit your job, sell everything, and then go to a foreign place! That’s the lie the enemy sells…it’s to scare you and make you think God is a slave master. He is not! He became the servant to come and die for you and me, so we could live forever with Him. All God really wants is a 24/7 relationship with you, just like you do with your friends, your spouse, and your kids. Just living with Him, sometimes more interactive, sometimes not, yet always consciously aware that your life intertwines with His. I never forget I am a husband and a dad, and thankfully, even when I fail, I always remember I am His child. How about you?