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Bible Wisdom

This Ain’t Heaven

on Friday, August 1, 2014

Man life sure can be tough some times.

Amen?

Amen (I’ll go ahead and credit you that one).

Just recently I have spoken with friends and relatives who have been through tough times:

cancer, job loss, marital infidelity, death of a loved one, friend whose parent is sick, job cut back, lay off, loss of trust from a friend, family corruption, drugs, alcohol, disease, unwanted pregnancy, heart problems, broken bones, mower won’t start, car wreck, and the list could just go on…

Some people have asked me and I could tell some were thinking it but just did not ask – why does God let bad things happen?  Some will even ask – why does God let bad things happen to good people?

I submit there is a simple answer that is hard for some to believe or even accept.IMG_5262

In Genesis 2 God told Adam and Eve to work and watch over the garden of Eden, but not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  In Genesis 3 we see their disobedience and followed the advice of satan by eating the forbidden fruit.  And we assume sin entered earth then.  But the more difficult question if you think about it is this – where did that serpent come from?  How did satan get to the middle of the garden that God made to tempt humans?  If satan had not tempted, then maybe humans would not have sinned and we would be in a much better place.  Maybe so.

But the fact of the matter, is that God did create all things – even satan himself.  Now why on earth would God do that?  And even more so why did He allow him here on earth?

I think the answer to many of the questions I have asked here can be answered by three words.

   This ain’t Heaven.

In Heaven there is no sin.  There is no pain.  There is no death!  There are no wasps, snakes, hornets or skunks.  There are no jobs, and our only desire will be God!  Man that is heaven!

But this earth just ain’t Heaven.  Do you see?  Do you agree?  Here on our 3rd rock from our sun we have a lot of things that make us uncomfortable.  And they will always be here on earth.  We do however, have a comforter here who is the Holy Spirit.  He will guide us and help us in our daily walk – while we inhabit this earthly vessel we call a body.  But one day this body will expire for all of us.

And when it does – we will all end up in one of two places.       Heaven or Hell         That choice is ours to make while we are still living and breathing in this earthly vessel.

Bible Positive Attitude Wisdom

Are you heartily at work?

on Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men – Colossians 3:23

Before sin came to our world there was work. Did you ever think of that?

In Genesis 2:15 we see that God put man in the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. This means that gathering fruit and vegetables was work, but in a good way. Imagine loving to do work! It brought Adam joy, food for life and a sense of accomplishment.

Digging work
Digging work

Then when sin came along that same work became toilsome. In Genesis 3:17-19 God said that the ground then would produce thorns and thistles.  You know what they are – competition for healthy plants. God also said that work then would cause us to sweat and make us exert a lot of effort.  Sometimes work is physically hard and sometimes it is just mentally draining.

Most people in our American society look at work as something that is hard and a duty they don’t look forward to. Commercials, TV shows and movies all give work a bad name. But we should realize that God created us for work, and by realizing that is part of our human design accept work as a way of glorifying God!

In Colossians 3:23 we are instructed to work heartily – just as if working for the Lord instead of humans.  To work heartily means with all your heart, to work genuinely, sincerely and warmly.  Is there anything in your life you do this way?  I know of people with a commitment to a team or cause with this kind of zeal, but not usually to work.  If you think of it, the matter comes down to a heart issue.  I think we need to work from our heart just as we love, play, sing or dance.

So when you work in retail you are obviously serving a customer, but you are also working to please God. If your job is to make widgets, then make them as if God paid you. At staff meetings, sales conferences, deliveries and while answering the phone see to it that you are pleasing God with your efforts.  If mowing, cleaning, chores and the like is your thing – then do them all in a way that would be pleasing to God!

One of my favorite quotes gives a great description of what somebody looks like who is working heartily:

The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his information and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he’s always doing both.     – James A. Michener

So – how heartily are you at your work today?

Bible Positive Attitude Wisdom

Yes, Work is good

on Monday, November 4, 2013

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters

Colossians 3:23

Before sin came to our world there was work.  Did you ever realize that?

In Genesis 2:15 we read that God put man in the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.  I think God intended Adam to gather fruit and vegetables daily to provide for nutritional needs.  Harvesting was work, but in a good way.  Imagine loving to do work!  Work brought Adam joy, food for life and a sense of accomplishment.

Then we see that when sin came along that same work became toilsome.  In Genesis 3:17-19 God said that the ground then would produce thorns and thistles – competition in several ways for healthy plants.  God also said that work then would cause us to sweat – to make us give a lot of effort.  Those same fruits and vegetables now became more difficult to harvest because of the weeds choked them out.

Split Wood
Austin and Spud split wood

Most people in our lifetime look at work as something that is hard and a duty they don’t look forward to doing.  Commercials, TV shows and movies all give work a bad name.  But we should realize that God created us for work, and by realizing that is part of our human design accept work as a way of glorifying God!  Work is another way to worship God!

So if you work in retail you are serving a customer, but you are working to please God – that’s how He designed you.  If you stack, ship, move or manage for a living – do your tasks to please God.  If your job is to make widgets, then make them as if God paid you.  If mowing, cleaning, chores and the like is your thing – do them all to be pleasing God!

Below is one of my favorite quotes that gives a great description of what somebody looks like that loves working and is bringing glory to God.

“The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his information and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he’s always doing both.”

James A. Michener