Heaven Can't Wait

Heaven is a place that may or may not exist. We cannot prove it is there; although several people say they went there during a near death experience, came back to life on this earth and wrote a book to tell about what they saw.

If heaven is not a real place, then our view of eternity is dim and our troubles on earth are intensified and depressing. Paul mentions that, in Christ, our trials on earth are a drop in the bucket compared to eternity (2 Corinthians 4:17); but if there is no heaven, then tribulation is hopeless.

Believing in Heaven takes faith, which is hope for unseen things (Hebrews 11:1). Yet, we have more than blind faith. Jesus lived on earth, suffered crucifixion, died, rose again, lived on earth for about 40 more days, and then was translated to heaven in His immortal body in front of eye witnesses.

When we surrender our life to God in salvation, we are joint heirs with Jesus of everything pertaining to God's Kingdom, including heaven. We are freed from the penalty as well as the penchant to sin and freely given the righteousness of Christ in exchange (Romans 3:22; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

God calls us to remove from our life the distractions on this earth, which compete with our relationship with Him. He invites us to draw nearer to Him each day as He fills us through our entire being with all of His fullness (Ephesians 3:19, Amplified Bible).

We will finally grasp the reality of heaven when we pass from this life into eternity. First, we have the privilege of abiding in the presence of God moment by moment for the rest of our life on earth. He satisfies our longing and fills our hungry soul (Psalm 107:9).

Prayer:

Father God, as we grow spiritually, our intimacy with You increases daily, and our unity with You is more focused and dominates our thoughts, words and deeds. When You are our delight, You put Your desires in our heart (Psalms 37:4), and You shower us with Your love and blessings. As we commune with You each day, Your Spirit fills us with the divine nature and character of Christ who dwells within us (Galatians 2:20; 2 Peter 1:4). We decrease and He increases as we surrender our life, goals, plans and desires to You (John 3:30).

You help us to reject a life imprisoned in the here and now on this earth. We no longer concentrate on the temporal, but keep the eternal in constant focus; give us a consuming love for eternal rewards; fill us with Your Spirit and Your presence and walk in us through every trial we face in this life. Help us to draw nearer to You, and to live in eternity now (John 17:8).

Thought for the Day:

Eternal life is knowing God and Jesus whom He sent, which begins with the moment of salvation and continues in everlasting life in God's presence. - John 17:3

Entering God's Rest

All during our lifetime, we love to create on God's behalf through our vocation, hobbies, parenthood and church ministry. However, we fail to heed God's advice to take times off to rest (Genesis 2:1-2:3).

God gave us an example of how to spend our time by taking a day to focus on rest. We usually use our "day off" to catch up on chores around the house, to stock our pantry and to prepare for the coming week.

During the most hectic days at work, home and with family, we often wish we could fly away on the wings of a dove and be at rest (Psalm 55:6). Yet, we fail to use our days off to relax and breathe.

Most of us enjoy our work, and realize that no matter what our vocation, it is God who actually pays our check (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25). This helps us not to be anxious about our livelihood.

God gives us our job and keeps us there until He has another place for us to minister for His Kingdom (Acts 8:39). Regardless of our vocation, God has His perfect plans for us (Ephesian 2:10).

There is no reason to feel worried about any aspect of our life. We take all of our cares to the Lord in prayer, because He cares about us (1 Peter 5:7).

God's peace guides us, not through our human mind, but through our spirit. He guards our emotions and mind from worry and stress, because we abide in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).

Jesus modeled this peace through storms, Satan's temptations, persecution and His crucifixion (Matthew 8:24). God is humble and gentle with us and gives us rest for our soul (Matthew 11:28-29).

Pray:

Father God, remind us that You offer us a fulfilling and passionate relationship with You, which keeps us in peace because of Your faithful provision for all of our needs (Romans 8:28). This requires regular quiet times in order to enter your rest (Hebrews 13:5).

As we pray with our children and model a Godly walk for them, they too will learn the importance of trusting You with their life. Help us to enter into Your rest and to abide under the shadow of Your wings (Hebrews 4:10; Psalm 91).

Thought for the Day:

Pray as a single person, as a couple and with your children to inspire anticipation for the miracles ahead, as well as faith in God's faithfulness, which both inspire us to rest in Him and to walk in His peace in every situation.

Maturing into the Fullness of Christ

 

Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, our sole source of truth and our single pathway to eternal life (John 14:6). He came to earth for the purpose of setting us free from our past and from Satan’s bondage (Galatians 5:1).

We receive a new identity in Christ, which builds up our self-image and gives us a holy boldness in the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:17). The trauma of our past and the damaged emotions, which we suffered because of these events, are healed through His truth. ( www.theophostic.com )

As humans, we draw conclusions, make goals and nourish dreams, which often cause us to reap destruction (Proverbs 14:12). God already gave us everything we need to mature into the fullness of Christ in us, as we trust Him with our life (Ephesians 2:10, 4:13, 15).

Maturity in Christ comes from walking in His will and by His Spirit each moment of the day (2 Peter 1:3). We learn to resist that yoke of slavery, which Satan has planned for our life; and, instead, to walk in the freedom of Christ, who truly sets us free (Galatians 5:1).

During His crucifixion and death, Jesus focused on His glory awaiting Him in heaven (Philippians 3:14). During our trials and persecution, we too can focus on the rewards, which God gives us both now and also those He reserves for us in glory (Philippians 3:20; Acts 5:41; Philippians 3:10).

Prayer:

Father God, help us to live by the faith of Your Son, who loves us and willingly gave His life for us (Galatians 2:20; Romans 1:17). We count it a joyous occasion when we walk through defeat, trouble and complications (James 1:2-8), because there is always a seed for a miracle in every trial. Help us to trust in You alone for our daily needs and remind us to use Your benefits to help other people too.

Thought for the Day:

We tend to rely on self-effort during good times and only turn to God at the first sign of difficulty; God wants us to entirely surrender every aspect of our life to Him and to walk in His perfect will for us. – Ephesians 2:10