Life.

Life—It is what you make of it (or so some claim).

Life—It passes quickly, so don’t waste it (or so the pragmatic exclaim).

Life—It’s what happens when we’re busy making plans (cry the realist).

Life—Do we set out to enjoy it?

Life—The theorist proposes his idea(s) to define it (LIFE), and then he sets out to prove his theories are right.

Life—A name of a game we play. A cereal box we see upon the grocery shelf. A magazine’s name & claim to fame.

Life—God formed our earthly bodies and then blew into us the breath of life (speak the Scriptures).

Life—The song we sing. A Psalm.

Life–Earthly vs Eternal (prophecy proclaims).

Life. Life. Life. Life.  God’s Word has much to say about our life.

Life.    From cover to cover, the Bible shares the truth, the whole sum of our days, & the equation of our time, & the definition of our walk, & finally the deliverance of the LORD.  The psalmist David penned words to define “life,” and then the apostle Peter quoted David’s words when he wrote his first letter to those believers scattered throughout Asia.

“To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit;
not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.   For,

THE ONE WHO DESIRES LIFE,

TO LOVE AND SEE GOOD DAYS,

MUST KEEP THE TONGUE FROM EVIL.  AND HIS LIPS FROM SPEAKING DECEIT.

HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD;

HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT.FOR THE EYES OF THE LORD ARE TOWARD THE RIGHTEOUS,

AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER,

BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL”

(Psalm 34: 12-22 & 1 Peter 3: 8-12).

The shepherd-boy David, the warrior David, the leader and king David. The fisherman by trade, turned apostle Peter. Both men had received much from God—–to proclaim about life.

Take Peter (for example), he was a rash man, quick to run ahead in his thoughts and his actions.

Peter saw the truth manifested with his earthly eyes & Peter heard the deceitful word come from his own mouth and to his ears as the morning cock crowed the dawn’s new day.

Peter lived life, some might say, on the edge.

But Peter also lived life and believed in Jesus.

Peter was the man who said, “Go away from me LORD, for I am a sinful man!” whenever he saw the miraculous catch of fish the LORD Jesus had provided. When Peter obeyed Jesus’ words to “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch” (Luke 5:8 &4), Peter saw the power of God upon his own life. In that moment, Peter heard Jesus (the Son of God) reply, “Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men” (Luke 5; 10).

LIFE. Peter’s life was changed that day.

LIFE. What about ours? Has our life become “changed” by the voice of God?

LIFE—WE HAVE ONLY ONE TO LIVE THIS SIDE OF ETERNITY.

ETERNAL LIFE—WE ONLY TRULY FACE ONE LIFE-DECISION.  YES, ONE CHOICE CHANGES OUR ETERNAL DESTINATION.

What will we do with this one life God has given to each of us?

Will we choose to live?

Will we let down our nets into the deep?

Will we obey, even though we do not fully understand?

Will we see the miraculous catch God provides?

Will we pull up our boat and leave the way of life we have always pursued when the LORD leads us to move?

Will we see our sinful nature?

Will we follow Jesus, wherever HE leads.

I am most thankful for David & Peter’s obedience.

I am most thankful David chose four stones as God instructed. I am also most thankful he followed God and grew to become a valiant warrior, for the way he pursued God’s heart, and for the way he served God as Israel’s great king.

I am most thankful for Peter’s footrace with John to run to the tomb of Jesus, for his human way of life, for his realness as the man he was, for the way he saw Jesus ascend toward heaven, for the message he later preached, for his words Peter spoke to the early believers, and for his discipleship of living as a follower of the LORD. 

Life is so precious, as we each know so well, and not anything that we would toy with, for fear of losing it too soon.

Life truly is a vapor (just 70 or 80 or 90 or even 103 years)—-BUT eternity, well, that LIFE IS FOREVERMORE!!!

So, in closing, and so your entire life is not spent reading this blog, the psalmist David ended his thirty-fourth psalm by exclaiming, “The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned”. (Psalm 34: 22).

God promises LIFE to those who believe—–Eternal Life with God.

God promises eternal LIFE shared within His presence—–Forever & Ever & Evermore.

God promises us LIFE found through HIM.

It is a promise from Almighty God, one we can accept today, while our LIFE still remains within us.

LIFE.    Let each of us seek eternal life through Jesus while (today, one moment within our lifetime) our life and heartbeat still remains.

“They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes” (Revelation 7: 16-17).