So I’m sitting on a bus in an island called St. Lucia, that got nearly swept by a hurricane last fall. We are going up these curvy mountains with a tour guide who tells us that he had lost nearly everything in the hurricane. So we are driving and i overhear my dad having a conversation with him in the front seat.
My dad asks the man many questions, but there is a particular one i want to share. I want to challenge to think how you would answer.
“How is your relationship with Jesus, & how do you communicate & live with him daily?”
Think about it.
How do you?
The mans response changed my life, he said this, “Well sir, i try my best, but it’s not easy it’s a very hard task.”
Wow.
I sat in my chair thinking, yes it’s a hard task, but this man is trying his best. He just had everything taken away from a hurricane, but he’s still trying to pursue Christ. Just the week before i was complaining because i was determined i wasn’t strong enough to follow Christ. But this man has every right to not be strong enough & he’s still trying his best.
I fell into a slump a few weeks ago & i was determined the world was better over the Lord. I wanted the easy way out, i just wanted to be content with my life so i chased after things i thought would make things better.
Y'all let me tell you first hand that chasing after the things of this world will never satisfy your soul. Only chasing after the everlasting love of Jesus will eternally satisfy us.
Things of this world come & go, but the love, & grace of the Lord will stay with us for eternity.
Let me be straight, if we can’t try our best to pursue Christ, then what does our relationship with Christ look like? Why can we not try our best, even though times might be tough. We know he's always there, & we know that it is okay to make mistakes. So why is it so difficult?
I think there could be many answers to this question but one i think most of us could relate to is fitting in. When we try to fit in, we take the easy path, when we try to fit in, we don't fit in for Christ, we fit in to the world. The world is not something you want to fit into.
The Lord is our strength. If we don’t ask him to help us through these times, & if we try to get through them alone, we will never experience the strength of the Lord.
Not only will we not experience it, but we could potentially keep others from experiencing it. He wants to help, you just have to let him.
I promise that it’s worth it. The hard times when it feels like there’s no way out. The times you just want to quit. The times you just know you’ve messed up too bad. The tough times when things don't make since. They are all worth it. Don’t take the easy way out. Don’t conform to the patterns of the world. The easy way is not worth it. It may look easy to the eye, but it destroys the heart.
Jesus promises eternal life to those who believe, so the least we could do is give that opportunity to other people by loving them, and showing them the goodness of the Lord. Let others experience the same joy we do. Stay on the path of the Lord. I promise his path will endure above any other path anyone or anything tries to get you to take.
The lord wants what is best for you. He is always on your side, & he will never give up on you. You just can’t give up on him, & you can’t give up on yourself. Keep the faith & keep trusting.
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