Luke 10:20, “Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in Heaven.”
This is a wonderful and practical truth that I want to share with you, that
the Lord taught me long ago. That is, you can have joy even when all
happiness is gone. Although everything in your life may be messed up, wrong,
falling apart, and utterly chaotic; you can still have a perfect peace in
your heart and mind that passeth all understanding if you'll
focus on Heaven instead of earth. This earthly life is so short.
Many precious Biblical truths come to mind here . . .
Philippians 4:6, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which PASSETH ALL UNDERSTANDING, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” The Greek word for “careful” means “anxious,” or “anxiety.” I don't care who it is, even the best Christians fail to cast their burdens upon the Lord at times. Just as the Gospel hymn, WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS, goes... Oh what peace we often forfeit, Oh what needless pain we often bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer! 'Tis so true!
I don't know about you, but I don't want to live in a world of misery. As I grow older, as a born-again believer who has a blessed hope in Jesus Christ, I have great peace in my heart knowing that I will soon be with my precious Lord. Titus 2:13, “Looking for that BLESSED HOPE, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” As believers we don't hope that God's Word is true; but rather, we HAVE A HOPE because God's Word is true. Amen! We each have a blessed hope that our beloved Savior will return one day. Regardless if Jesus returns soon, or I instead go to be with Him at the end of this short earthly life, I am joyful in my Lord (in Whom I trust completely). I love Jesus with all my heart! If you've never been born-again, then I invite you as a dear friend to acknowledge your woeful guilty condition of sin, and come to God the Father through faith in His only begotten Son, Jesus, the Christ (Savior).
Titus 1:2, “In HOPE of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.” There's that precious word “hope” again, and in this case reminding us that we have a hope of eternal life. Amen, hallelujah, glory to God! I don't know about you, but that makes me want to jump up and down in joy. I love God so much for the PROMISE, and that's the word used repeatedly, of eternal life. God made us a promise before the world began, that He would provide a way of redemption from the curse of sin and the Law. God in His foreknowledge knew that man would fall and need a way of escape. Before God ever spoke the first element of the universe into existence, He made us a PROMISE to give us eternal life through faith in His dear Son, Jesus Christ. God is good!!! Titus 1:2 mentions the word, PROMISE. This is why each believer can make the claim that, I KNOW I AM SAVED! I “know” because my salvation rests in the promises of God, and not upon my own frail, inferior, unreliable and sinful self-righteousness!
I have been through much suffering and hardships in my life. I have had two major neck surgeries in 2009 and 2010 to repaire herniated disks in my neck at C5-C6-C7. Both surgeries have only made me worse. I have tingling, burning, a puffy sensation, and radiating pain in both arms and legs. My symptoms are pretty much constant except the degree of razor-like radiating pain in my limbs, which vary greatly throughout the day. It brings tears to my eyes at times. God is good! Psalm 145:9, “The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” Amen!
I never fully realized just how many awesome promises that God has made to me (as His child) in the Bible. For example: I read
We grow in the Lord, hopefully we will learn over time that trusting the
Lord is the only way to make it through this life. I won't go as far to say
that people choose to be miserable. I've heard somebody say that once. It's
not that easy. You can't just choose to be happy. At least not if you're a
caring person. A caring person with a tender-heart is going to get their
feelings hurt deeply, suffer inexplicable mental anguish, and endure a depth
of emotional pain that only God (or someone else in your shoes) can
understand. It's not possible to be happy when your life is falling apart,
and any honest person understands this. But praise God, we can have inner
joy and peace in our hearts and minds as Christians who HAVE A BLESSED HOPE.
We don't hope; we have a hope.
And so we find ourselves bitter over the past, or worried concerning the future, and on top of that we're frustrated about the present. Jesus knew this and gave us some advice in Matthew 6:34, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Jesus told us to live for today. Why be bitter over past failures, sins or experiences that we cannot change? Why worry about the future when it may not even come. We have no guarantee of tomorrow.
I am thinking of the Apostle Peter, who the Lord told to come to Him upon the Sea of Galilee. Peter literally walked upon the water as Jesus did, obeying a royal command. But when Peter took his eyes off the Lord, looking instead upon the storm's tempest, the billowing waves and the mighty winds, he began to sink into the treacherous Sea.
