Get ready to start a journey…a journey through the pages of the Bible and the pages of your life.
What we do today matters for tomorrow. Our actions are not insignificant in the eyes of God. He will finally evaluate every word, thought, and deed. This will take place at two judgments—the Great White Throne judgment (for unbelievers) and the Judgment Seat of Christ (for believers). The final judgments are unavoidable. We will all give an account.
Fear God. Scripture uses that phrase (or similar phrases like “the fear of the Lord”) three hundred times. It sounds a bit ominous, doesn’t it? How do I approach One I am to fear? Can I truly love a person I am afraid of? How do living in fear of God and loving God mesh? And how do grace and fear fit together?
Life doesn’t always make sense. Some things we experience just don’t fit nicely into our box of expectations. We like to be in control, and we can control things we understand that fall into our line of thinking…but…when we can’t understand how and why things happen…the control eludes us.
God owns it all, and everything we have is a gift from him. Satisfaction comes when we are content with what God gives and steward his gifts in a way that honors him.
Many people long for life to be a circus of sorts, looking for entertainment and pleasure. That may include using your phone to scroll endlessly through YouTube, watching a daredevil drive her bike off the garage roof onto a homemade ramp that sends her flying into a swimming pool, or 100 interesting animal moments caught on camera. Seeking pleasure might drive you to drink, drugs, or sex.
Finally, our vocation is a gift from God. Every day we should do our work in a way that honors him. Sure, we have a boss and performance reviews, but at the end of the day, only one review will matter. The Scottish pastor and Bible scholar Harry Ironside worked for a cobbler when he was a boy…