Not Forever

No human person is perfect. I've known some who had a lot of perfection about them, but none of them had perfection down perfect.

And no one or thing on this earth or in this life is forever. Many people struggle with these two aspects of life here on this globe. How many times do people say, 'You can't judge me, you're not perfect.' 

That brings to my mind this story: 

"A priest and a pastor are standing by the side of a road holding up a sign that reads “The end is near! Turn around now before it’s too late!”

A passing driver yells, “You guys are nuts!” and speeds past them. From around the curve, they hear screeching tires—then a big splash.

The priest turns to the pastor and says, “Do you think we should just put up a sign that says ‘Bridge Out’ instead?"

Side note here, someone suggested this ending: The pastor answers, "No, I think we need another sign that says--"You're almost there, speed up...".

There are times when no matter how you try to help people, they just take offence. Do we have to be perfect to tell people what they're doing is not going to work? In day to day situations the only thing to do is stand back and let them do it their own way. Sometimes there is a second chance when it doesn't work out, but most often there isn't, and in the end it just is what it is. So, we're not perfect, and our body isn't eternal. There of course is the rub. Our spirit will continue on eternally. Our clay earthen vessels will some day wear out and return to dust—as they say 'ashes to ashes, dust to dust, "for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."Genesis 3:19 But 'You're almost there, speed up,' is a very poor choice as well.

It makes me very sad when I go to a funeral and the survivors all praise the deceased for living their lives and 'doing it their own way'. That's all well and good on this side of eternity, but the survivors can't see the spirit that has left the clay vessel. The vessel is like the shell of a katydid, a butterfly, or any creature that forms a new outward being, and it's the left behind thing. Perhaps the spirit is pleading that the survivors won't follow his/her example. Pleading that those left behind will heed God's warnings and God's Words.  

We can't do it our way, unless our way is God's way first. This is the sad fact of this life. An even sadder fact is that if all of us would do it God's way our lives would all be better. It begs the question, since God is perfect, He can judge us (and will one day), the person saying "You can't judge me, you're not perfect," isn't being quite honest are they... 

2 Corinthians 4:7  "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves;" 

 In the last few years we've had a number of prominent people who've committed suicide. With the last person's death some have come out and blasted the person for their selfish act. 

• first off, yes it is selfish. At least it's thoughtless for our loved ones who will have to deal with the aftermath
• second, not knowing why the person saw this as a solution, blasting them and calling them selfish is like trying to close the door after the cat has escaped
• third, reaching out before the person comes to that point is crucial. Let me repeat, before they reach that point
• and final, blasting a dead person for anything is fruitless, and in its own way selfish

Here is an excerpt from my upcoming book "If I Should Die". Ruth's mother had been murdered two years earlier, and the exchange goes like this:

Ruth broke the mesmerizing silence. “Thank you for the fries and shake—and for all you’ve done, Julius. We’ve been praying about this matter for a long, long time. We try to fix everything ourselves, and when we can’t then we take it to God. We should take it to Him first.” 

“What about your mother?” Seth asked. 

“Excuse me?” She raised her eyebrows.

“Shouldn’t God have done something to save her?”

“The important thing isn’t that we will die, or how we will die, the crucial thing is our spiritual condition when we die. Mom obeyed the Lord Jesus. Evil didn’t destroy her faith.” Ruth frowned, and examined her hands as they lay in her lap. “I miss my mother, but we can’t turn back time.”

“There are no magic wands in life.” Julius looked sideways at Seth. “You shouldn’t allow Satan to sidetrack your mission.” Julius glanced in the mirror at Ruth. “The question goes, ‘if God is so powerful, why do bad things happen’? We live in an uncertain world. One that Eve and Adam chose—sometimes bad things happen.”

“True. There are no guarantees, and our spiritual condition trumps everything else,” Seth said.

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Dues Vult / God wills it

 I found the comment to be intriguing:
"Walsh is correct. Modern churches have done their utmost to become all things to everyone, and in their homogeneous wanderings, have lost sight of the core principals of Christianity. Values. Honor. Respect. Sacrifice. Perseverance. Decency. Tradition. To stand against evil, even in the face of death. These are the things the Bible teaches, and our Faith demands. Until we return to the foundations of our Faith, darkness will continue to run rampant in this world."

The comment was taken from an article by Matt Walsh, and was labeled Marty P and Deus Vult, lest I be accused of not giving credit where credit is due.

That observation coupled with this quote is by G.K. Chesterton:

"The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."

~ G.K. Chesterton

 Resonated with me as I read and hear so many in the Christian community trying to analyze why we are losing so many of our young people into the world. Hello, my brothers and sisters in Christ. If you line most of our Christian youngsters up alongside their worldly peers you honestly can't pick them out of the group. They are shuffled off to the same secular day-care centers, eventually to be shuffled into the same secular schools. They are taught the same secular (and in some cases horrid nonsense) of public schools, and we wonder at their turning away from what we perceive to be Christianity. 

At it's core Christianity is a giving up of one's self:
Matthew 16:24  "Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." 

We haven't taught our children to sacrifice for Christ, in word or deed. Those in authority are afraid to teach their members on this as well. Often we hear platitudes about sacrificing, but that is as far as it goes. Look at the list in the above comment: Values. Honor. Respect. Sacrifice. Perseverance. Decency. Tradition. To stand against evil, even in the face of death.

Well, well, 'Values'. What does it mean, Values? Perhaps honor and respect could be the first of the values?

• Ephesians 6:1  "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. 2)  Honor thy father and mother (which is the first commandment with promise)," 
• 1 Timothy 5:17  "Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and in teaching."
• Romans 13:7  "Render to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor."

Sacrifice? I've been in this situation more times than I can list. You are at a different congregation, or in a different scenery at least. After introductions, invariably the question is asked, 'What do you do? What kind of work are you involved in? It is seldom thought that as a wife that your number one 'job', would be in the home. And if you answer, "I work at home" there is a void. Everyone knows what you do 'in the home', so what would the next question be? There is a plethora of questions  and conversations that could follow, but it is so seldom that we get that answer most of us don't know what to do with it. What does this have to do with sacrifice? Historically men have been the 'breadwinners' of the family, and families lived on what the goodman brought home. Made do with what they had. Now, of course prices are so high there is no way families can make do with less than two incomes. To live on one income would require...sacrifice. And indeed, it would be a sacrifice, I don't say that lightly. 

It would show that we value something above money. That we would rather obey and follow scriptural principles than sell our soul to the highest bidder.    

So, honor and sacrifice would be a beginning, followed by perseverance, decency, and even tradition. How important is our faith? How important are our children, and that they be taught truth? How important that they be taught to stand against evil, even in the face of death? If we can't or won't stop following the crowd, do we really expect our children to do so?

"These are the things the Bible teaches, and our Faith demands. Until we return to the foundations of our Faith, darkness will continue to run rampant in this world."

The comment  taken from the article by Matt Walsh, from Marty P (Deus Vult), is on the mark. I don't know who this person was, but unless we as Christians stop howling in anger against those who would try to tell us the truth and turn back to following the Lord, we're doomed.

Philippians 4:12  "I know how to be abased, and I know also how to abound: in everything and in all things have I learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in want. 13)  I can do all things in him that strengtheneth me."

Hallelujah! What a Savior!