One More For JC

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.  (Ephesians 2:8-9) Salvation.  Eternal life.  Heaven.  It's something that most people either think about, don't care about, are confident about, are confused about, or are concerned about.  I've had many conversations with people over the years about the subject, and they generally fall into one of the above categories. Most of my life, I've felt confident about my eternal future.  I base that confidence on the very words of Christ and live by the verse, John 3:16:  "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."  I also fully acknowlege my sinfulness and realize that my salvation is not based on my own individual merit, but rather the perfect sacrifice of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The main reason my confiden

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32) Forgiveness is not easy. It is a struggle to find it within my heart to forgive another person that has gone out of their way to hurt or harm me. But God commands it, so I try. If you read the bible, you can not escape the concept of forgiveness. Jesus lived a life of forgiving others. He directed us to "turn the other cheek" and not to live with an "eye for eye" mentality. He directed us to "love our enemies" and not just those that love us.  In the Lord's prayer he instructed us to pray the following: "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us". I like to think that I "turn the other cheek", "love my enemies", and "forgive those who trespass against me" but I d

Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him.  (Job 13:15) If you ever find yourself sad or depressed, open up the bible and read the book of Job.  I know of no man or woman in recorded history that ever suffered as much as Job did.  He literally lost everything he had (donkeys, sheep, camels, servants, children, house, his own flesh, and on and on).  But through each test, Job never wavered in his faith in the Lord.  He persisted despite protests from his family and friends; his wife even encouraged him to "Curse God and die!"  Job's response to her is something I wish we all had the wisdom to say "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?"      We all will face tough times in our lives whether it be financial, physical, mental, or spiritual battles.  The key to remember during these times is that we do not fight the battle alone.  God is ever present (although we often forget) to answer our prayers.  It might take years before we ever see an answer