No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please Him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. {2 Timothy 2:4}
Living for God is a serious business. Living here on this earth is not the end of all things for us. When our hope is in Jesus we are looking towards the things that are coming, not the things that are taking our attention at the moment. We live in the spirit not in the flesh. We walk by faith not by sight.
But sometimes the world will have us think the present moment is all there is. Sometimes we get so encumbered about the cares of this life that we forget about heaven altogether. We let our problems and our troubles overwhelm us. We think up all kinds of plans and solutions of how to make our lives easier. We scheme and we plan and we stay awake all night trying to think of ways to make things easier. Sometimes in the process of planning and thinking, we get ourselves overwhelmed and discouraged. We let our situation dictate our happiness. All we see is our problem and the amount of work – and money for that matter, it will take to solve it. Life isn’t easy. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it was?
Nothing is going to last. Jesus is the only thing that matters. The Bible tells us,
Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. {Colossians 3:2}
The only way to deal with this life is to always remember Jesus. Get the Lord involved. He didn’t come down to die for our sins so that we are on our own with our problems in this life. He didn’t come down to show us His word and overcome death, hell, and the grave and the principalities of this world so that we’re on our own in this life. We have Him. We need to get into the habit of turning our sorrows, our problems, and our petty things to Him. We need to turn all our desires over to Him. And most importantly, we need to set our hearts and affections upon the Lord and the things that are coming for us in heaven. This life is passing, it will soon be over. The only thing that matters is God and His work.
There are always going to be distractions. There are always going to be things that will vie for our attention, but the most important thing to do is to stay focused on the things of God and to do His work. We can’t let this life get to us. We can’t let the things of this world drag us down or distract us, or win our hearts. We can’t let anything take us away from our ultimate goal in this life – to be with the Lord forever. Jesus is all that matters.
Stay focused and keep the fight of faith. Win the life we want to have forever with the Lord. Making it to heaven is all that truly matters. Apostle Paul tells us in his writings,
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. {Colossians 3:1-4}
If we want God more than anything in this life, we will keep fighting in our faith for Him. We will leave the world behind in our hearts. We won’t keep loving this world and planning to stay in it. When we plan, we plan with Jesus. We say to Him,
“Father, please show me how to live for You here on this earth. I need to eat and have clothes to wear and a house to live in. How do You want me to do this? I need to have a job so I can pay my bills. Lord, please show me how I’m supposed to do this and do Your work at the same time. I don’t want to set my heart and my affections on this world. I don’t want to love this world. I know I’m only here temporarily and that You may come for me at any time. Please Father, show me how to live my life for You here on this earth that will give You honor and glory. Thank You, Father. Amen.”
And trust me on this, He will show you. The Lord has work for us and a purpose for us here in this world. He brought us here to come to know who He is – to seek after Him and come to the wonderful knowledge of who He is. He wants us to come to know His love. Life here on this earth is just a part of the plan, but it’s not the end of all things. We don’t live here and die here and that’s it for us. We live here for one sole reason and purpose: for God. His plan is all that matters. Loving Him is all that matters because that is His plan for us – to love Him back. He gave His life for us because He’s so in love with us. He paid the price at Calvary so that we can find forgiveness of sins and belong to Him forever and ever. Loving Jesus is all that matters. Nothing is going to be greater than this. Love Him and we’ve got it made.
So, keep moving forward! We can’t let this world get to us. It’s temporary, what’s coming is eternal. Jesus is all that matters.
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. {Hebrews 12:2}
That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; {Colossians 1:10}
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. {Matthew 24:30-31}
Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. {Matthew 24:42}
Prayer
Oh, Father, I thank You because great is Your love for me today. I thank You that You will never leave me nor forsake me. Help me then Lord Jesus, to keep my eyes and my heart upon You. Help me to live on this earth with a heart that always waits for You. Whenever I make my plans, help me to always talk to You about them and ask You for counsel. Better yet, help me to surrender my heart and my life and my plans to You, and ask You to show me how I should live for You. Thank You Father for hearing my prayers and my desire to have more of You today, in Your most wonderful and precious name, Jesus. Thank You, Father. Amen.