Sometimes I wonder how I can possibly keep up with how fast life is going on around me. It is moving so fast that that catching up let alone keeping up seems impossible.
Maybe it is a sign of my age but somehow I don’t think so. When I was young, time moved so slowly that I wanted to nudge it forward. As I have gotten older, time certainly seems to have sped up. I have seen the days go by quickly but in a satisfying way that shows a life that has been lived and well spent.
The speed of life and the world that appears out of control is different. It doesn’t leave a good feeling, rather, it can leave anxiety and even for some, fear, of what the next day is going to bring.
The daily news is so unrelentingly bad that many people are opting to just close their eyes and ears and ignore what is taking over our lives. I know that I no longer watch the news and, if I read something, I make sure that it is through a source that I can trust and still I generally don’t trust it.
With so many of us playing blind, deaf and dumb, there is little to stop whatever it is that is coming. For Christians, we have an inkling of what will be as our Lord has provided us a long term plan. Non-Christians are taking this as it comes, without an understanding of the powers that are really being put in play.
From the moment that Jesus ascended into heaven, the world has been in the end-times. He had just defeated Satan once and for all and returned to the God the Father until the Father had determined that it was time to pass some judgements upon the earth and its inhabitants.
Until that happens, Satan has still maintained his control of the powers which effect us. It is he and his force of other fallen angels who are trying to crush us and keep people from finding the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
The Bible speaks much of individuals who were possessed by these demons. I don’t believe that demonic possession has somehow stopped in the time since then. The good news for Christians is that while we can be effected by these demons, we cannot be possessed by them. With the Holy Spirit living within our hearts, that room is taken. For those who are not Christians, there is an empty spot that can be filled by good or by evil.
While Satan, himself, is busy condemning us to God (while he still has access to heaven), it is the rest of the demonic angels who are causing havoc within our world. Their delight is in our ruin and they glory in our pain.
And it is painful to see what we people are capable of doing to one another. Sometimes in the name of religion, sometimes in the name of hate itself, sometimes as a way to instill a value system and sometimes, in a way that speaks of a very twisted type of love.
It is generally the last type of abuse that brings me to my knees in prayer. When I see parents abuse their children or individuals twist love into molestation, abuse and rape that I cry out.
There are people who would kill their children rather than pay child support. There are so many men who have used the power of their position to force women into degradation (shown in the recent me, too movement.) There are young girls and boys who have been enslaved into drugs and who are selling their bodies for their next fix. There are those who beat and abuse those closest to them, including children, as a way of controlling the rage they feel for someone or something else.
It is easier and more comfortable to just pretend it isn’t happening. As Christians, we can even find some justification as we are told not to be of the world. However, I don’t think that Jesus meant for us to ignore what is going on as his last command to us was to go into the world and preach the good news that Jesus has given us freedom from sin.
If we do as we are commanded, then we are right in the midst of the battle. We are the troops of God in this time. It is for us, through prayer and through proclaiming the salvation message, to bring the light of Jesus to the rest of the world. Without us doing our part, there is no hope for the rest of mankind.
I heard recently that Christianity is always one generation away from falling by the wayside of history. I’m sure that has been true since the church first began. That it has remained in place for almost two thousand years is the sign that God has his hand on us and we are doing his will. Each generation since the first has answered the call and command of our Savior.
It’s time for us, in this tumultuous generation, to step up and ask God what he would have us do rather than simply ask him to make it all stop and go back to slower and easier times. The tempo of life around us is increasing and becoming more and more disjointed as it works its way to destruction. Unless God provides a time of haven, it will increase exponentially.
When we read about the latter days, the type of judgements that will be poured out make today’s news seem tame. Still, God has a plan and he especially has a plan for his children. As Christians, we should have no fear of the future but, as Christians, we should also be stepping in and stepping up and doing our part.
Each of us is a part of the body of Christ. We all have our special and unique spot and job to fill. If we don’t do our task, then the whole body is diminished and our work is left undone. There is also the frightening possibility that someone, somewhere will not hear the good news of Jesus because we were not obedient in doing what God asked of us.
I know that, for years, I ignored the call of God in my life. It’s taken my recent illness to wake me up to start fulfilling the role and path that God has for me. God’s plan would still have gone forward but I would have lost my part in making it happen.
That’s not to say that salvation is contingent upon our doing our work as no one can earn the grace of God. Instead, our works are a way of thanking God for the salvation that Jesus gave us freely. If I had continued to ignore the pull of God, I would still enter heaven when my life is over but I would have missed the opportunity to do something pleasing to God and also the blessings that God would pour out on me for having been obedient and answering his call.
If you are a Christian and, like me, having been putting your head in the sand, it is time to stop and take a good, hard look at the world. Then get down on your knees and ask God what he would have you do. When you get your answer, and you will, then do the job that he has given you. Do it whole-heartedly knowing that your efforts are pleasing to God.
Each day has been a gift to me. When I was told months ago to get my affairs in order, they meant that I would most likely die that very day. I was thankful for the warning as it gave me time to fix the one relationship in my life that was not in a good spot. With it fixed, I was ready for death without fears or regrets.
But I didn’t die. The only reason I could conceive of was that God still had work for me to do. In the first months after I came home instead of dying in the hospital, he put it on my heart to look for the reason I was still alive. It became clear to me early this year that writing this blog was a big part of what he wanted me to do.
I have always been a very private person about life events that matter most to me. It hasn’t been easy to talk about things in my life that have caused me pain and grief but I am doing so in hopes that someone can find some help and comfort in hearing about my experiences and that God is glorified in all that he has done for me. Some of the most challenging parts of my life are still waiting to be written about and, while my own mind doesn’t want to speak of them, I know that if and when God asks me to do so, I will.
This is the attitude that God wants from us. When he calls, our answer should be, Here I am, God, show me, send me, use me for whatever your purpose is. We need to stop hiding from the rest of the world and, instead, show the light of and proclaim the love of Jesus to those who are dying without him in their lives.
It is our great commission and it is time, right now, for us all to step up and fulfill the individual mission that God has for each of us.
Matthew 5:13-16
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”