I’m fixin to add another year on this week. In some respects time is flying by, but in others time seems to have a mind of it’s own. Life has held some pretty rough challenges for me just as it probably has for anyone with fifty plus years behind them. I think the greatest challenges have been those where a lifestyle change was in order and most of the time those changes were inspired by physical distress and/or the fear thereof. Somewhere along the line we discover there are things we’ve been doing, due to poor judgment on our part, that need to be stopped, if for no other reason than to preserve what’s left of our mind and body. Lifestyle changes aren’t easy, as a lot of us well know, and we had to face some situations we weren’t expecting and were rather uncomfortable with at the time. I’ve forced myself to trespass into some territory no person was ever meant to go and in the long run I’ve had to suffer and pay for my trespasses. Yet, with a goal in mind and a determined attitude to perform a lifestyle change I have, so far, paid the debt for my dastardly deeds and even found a way to forgive myself, for most of them. Ahhh, life is great if you allow yourself to grow in wisdom, and then use it.
There was an elderly man who owned some beautiful farmland in Florida. When he purchased the land it had a large pond situated in a secluded area towards the back of the property. For entertainment purposes he fixed it up real nice with a fishing pier, picnic tables, horseshoe court and some apple and peach trees. The pond was shaped-up and fixed-up for appearance and safe swimming, then it was posted, warning trespassers to Keep Out. One evening the old farmer decided to go down to the pond, as he hadn’t been there for some time, just to look things over. He grabbed a five-gallon bucket in hopes of returning with some fresh apples. As he neared the pond he heard voices, shouting and laughing with glee. Soon he could see a bunch of women skinny-dipping in the pond. He made the women aware of his presence where-upon they fled to the deep end. One of the women shouted, “We’re not coming out until you leave!” “I won’t be long,” answered the farmer as he held up the bucket, “I just came to feed the alligator.”
[Colossians 2: 1-19] Talk about a lifestyle change. Think about Jesus. He is God in a human body. (Genesis 1) God said and it was so. The power of God is in His Word. (John 1:1-5 & 14) The Word of God became flesh. It’s still awesome to me thinking that God loves me so much a part of Him was willing to leave heaven, live among men and teach us first hand how to live a righteous life obedient to His will. And then He did something even more awesome. He took the sins of the world upon Himself as God had planned it (2 Corinthians 5:21), “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Jesus gave himself to God as the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of all the sins of all men making them righteous in God’s eyes. Jesus took the sins of the world to the grave never to be seen again. The problem is, we keep digging them up again. Thanks be to God, because Jesus was obedient in all He had to do on this earth, God has given Him all power and authority in heaven and earth. Jesus has shown us the way and has left us instructions on how to be saved from ourselves. If we repent of our wrongdoings, are baptized in His name and strive to live as He taught us, a reward awaits us. Ahhh, life is so good with my God.
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