Hi Friends,
Let’s start at the beginning. The reason we can have, enjoy and share the Abundant Life is simply because God loves us. It is from this Love that everything else that is good and holy stems, including Everlasting Life. Listen:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Jn 3:16 NKJV
God’s Love is the prerequisite. This is where it all starts: God’s Love. If you have not committed any other Scripture to memory, please start here. It is the entire Gospel. 1- God so loves us. 2- Because God so loves us, He sent His only Begotten Son to do what we could never do, live a holy, pure, selfless life. 3- Because God so loves us, we are given the opportunity to believe, to place our Faith, in Jesus. 4- Because God so loves us and we have the opportunity to have a new, peaceful, fulfilling life in Christ, we should not perish, that is, we need never experience the effects of death here. 5- Because God so loves us, because we are in Christ, because we have the Giver of Life within, we have Everlasting Life starting here and then forevermore. Paradise is ours and it all starts because God so loves us.
Step one is critical. The best way to understand this is by thinking about how a child is conceived. A female is born with every “egg” she will ever have. A male produces monthly all the “sperm” that is required to create life. But if the two do not come together, there is no life. God is a Gentleman. He offers us His Love continually, but we must choose to receive it. The moment we do, His seed of Love comes into our “dead” or lifeless seed, and life is instantly formed. The two are now ONE forevermore. While we can distinguish the mom and dad’s characteristics, we can never separate the two seeds ever again. And so it is with us and Christ. I can clearly tell when I am acting according to my old lifeless self and when I am leaning on God and imitating His Love instead. But praise God, I can never be separated from Him ever again, even when I act like that old MMI person I used to be. (Ro 8:38-39) But it is because I am growing in my love for Him, that I begin to grow in His Image and let go of my old self. He grows in me as I grow in Him. A New You is formed within, then continues to be formed until this New You is on display for the whole world. And it all starts because God so loves us.
Spiritual growth is vital. It is essential if we are to love God with all we’ve got and love our neighbor as we love ourselves. It is crucial if we are to glorify God and be a blessing to those around us. It is mandatory if we are going to experience an ever-increasing and fulfilling life filled to the overflow with peace, joy and righteousness. Just like in a pregnancy, if the joining of the two seeds does not begin to divide and develop, no life will come from the union. We must come to God so He will show us what we need to “divide” from our old life. We must stay with God so He will teach us how to “develop” into the person He originally designed us to be. And we must stay, or abide in God so that this New You can form into a human that will display God’s Love to others. Then everyone wins: God IS glorified, others ARE blessed and you HAVE and can ENJOY this Abundant Life you were created for. And it all starts because God so loves us.
God’s Love is key. It all begins and ends here, in our growing relationship with our Creator God. Whenever you have any problem with any other “ripple,” you MUST come back to this most indispensable connection. I have learned, and continue to learn, to run to my Lord’s Throne whenever life begins to get a bit overwhelming…and I always find exactly what I need as I do. Won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
