Under it all
Does this ever happen to you?
Sometimes, I get so caught up in this world and "all" it has to offer, and I lose myself and who I am in a world that doesn't even care about me. I try to in a way, keep up with the Jones' or society - how sad is that! But it's a losing and defeating battle, NEVER will that satisfy me, never will that give me lasting joy or lasting hope. And I know this, I've known this since I was little, but the temptation always seems to seep into my life and trys to pull me in and defeat me. I am not saying that I always give into these temptations to say, get my hair done at the most trendy salon or buy "7 jeans" or get the coolest baby gear, but sometimes I do and after the fact the satisfaction of that purchase lasts minutes in comparison to the unfulfillment and crappiness I feel at how I used the money that God blessed me with in the first place.
If it wasn't obvious this is Tara's life long struggle, Tara vs the world! I think every single one of us faces this to different degrees. Mine is materialism and being content. But the really exciting thing is that I don't fight this battle alone, God is my rock and my help. " Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, maker of Heaven and Earth" - Psalm 121:1,2 How perfect is that!!?? And because of the Lords help I have come ALONG way! I never want to take advantage of his grace, but I am so thankful for the Lord, that he saved and forgave me and that he will never, ever abandon me.
One question I always ask myself is this, If there were no shopping malls, no cute clothes, no cute hairstyles, no technology, no cars, no houses, no ranking of classes in society, no one to impress.... what I mean is, what if none of these things mattered? And we didn't place so much time and energy into these worthless things? Under all these faces who am I? Under this shadow of who I am tempted to be, what is left? I don't want to waste all my time trying to become someone who won't last.... I know without a doubt that one day I will die, ten out of ten do indeed die! And who will I be when I stand before God? Will I be ashamed of how I lived my life? Or will God say to me, "Well done, my good and faithful servant?" I hope so! That's a pretty convicting thought. Hopefully it's enough to get us Christians off our butts and actually serve the Lord with ALL our hearts!! Not just parts of it here and there, when we feel like it. I am a child of God! That is so incredible!
God says he wants us to have life to the full. That does not mean full of earthly, non lasting burnable treasures but treasures that last for all eternity. We as Christians should be excited for that life - it's the deepest joy we'll ever experience and why would we ever deprive ourselves of that? What if we as Christians actually stood for what we believe and didn't cave to our temptations, if we kept an eternal perspective, then maybe we'd actually have revival and make a difference in this world. Too often I compromise my beliefs because I am the queen of justifying my actions, but I want to stop... I HAVE to stop if I want to make any impact for Christ. If I really want my friends and family to see the absolutely, amazing God I serve and desire to have "life to the full" then I need to be a real child of God and live for him whole heartedly - every single moment of every day. Eternity is very, very real.
Sometimes, I get so caught up in this world and "all" it has to offer, and I lose myself and who I am in a world that doesn't even care about me. I try to in a way, keep up with the Jones' or society - how sad is that! But it's a losing and defeating battle, NEVER will that satisfy me, never will that give me lasting joy or lasting hope. And I know this, I've known this since I was little, but the temptation always seems to seep into my life and trys to pull me in and defeat me. I am not saying that I always give into these temptations to say, get my hair done at the most trendy salon or buy "7 jeans" or get the coolest baby gear, but sometimes I do and after the fact the satisfaction of that purchase lasts minutes in comparison to the unfulfillment and crappiness I feel at how I used the money that God blessed me with in the first place.
If it wasn't obvious this is Tara's life long struggle, Tara vs the world! I think every single one of us faces this to different degrees. Mine is materialism and being content. But the really exciting thing is that I don't fight this battle alone, God is my rock and my help. " Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, maker of Heaven and Earth" - Psalm 121:1,2 How perfect is that!!?? And because of the Lords help I have come ALONG way! I never want to take advantage of his grace, but I am so thankful for the Lord, that he saved and forgave me and that he will never, ever abandon me.
One question I always ask myself is this, If there were no shopping malls, no cute clothes, no cute hairstyles, no technology, no cars, no houses, no ranking of classes in society, no one to impress.... what I mean is, what if none of these things mattered? And we didn't place so much time and energy into these worthless things? Under all these faces who am I? Under this shadow of who I am tempted to be, what is left? I don't want to waste all my time trying to become someone who won't last.... I know without a doubt that one day I will die, ten out of ten do indeed die! And who will I be when I stand before God? Will I be ashamed of how I lived my life? Or will God say to me, "Well done, my good and faithful servant?" I hope so! That's a pretty convicting thought. Hopefully it's enough to get us Christians off our butts and actually serve the Lord with ALL our hearts!! Not just parts of it here and there, when we feel like it. I am a child of God! That is so incredible!
God says he wants us to have life to the full. That does not mean full of earthly, non lasting burnable treasures but treasures that last for all eternity. We as Christians should be excited for that life - it's the deepest joy we'll ever experience and why would we ever deprive ourselves of that? What if we as Christians actually stood for what we believe and didn't cave to our temptations, if we kept an eternal perspective, then maybe we'd actually have revival and make a difference in this world. Too often I compromise my beliefs because I am the queen of justifying my actions, but I want to stop... I HAVE to stop if I want to make any impact for Christ. If I really want my friends and family to see the absolutely, amazing God I serve and desire to have "life to the full" then I need to be a real child of God and live for him whole heartedly - every single moment of every day. Eternity is very, very real.
Merry Christmas!!! And speaking of that here is a great post from my friend Tyler, it's insightful...
Everyday Faith
Everyday Faith
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Mal