Jan 09

Give us Your Life- Day Three

avatar Published in Untagged  by Pastor Mark
 During this first week of the fast already God is doing a neat thing by drawing us closer to Himself.  People with in our body who have never turned aside and fasted before are finding new hope and new meaning in their life.  Just two days ago I met a man who has been to our church just two times, his second week was this past Sunday.  When he heard about the fast somethinginside of him said that's for me. God in His mercy is allowing us to see the "bush" that is burning and drawing us to Him and to the Life that He longs for us to have.

John 10:10 gives us a description of the life that the Lord longs to give us, look with me for a moment at the last part of that verse from a few different versions.

 I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

KJV

I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.

The Message

but I came to give life-life in all its fullness.

NCV

 I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

NIV

This life that Jesus offers those who will follow Him is a life of completeness and fullness.  It is not a life filled with stuff that will take are fancy for a few days or months, but it is a life that has eternal implications.  It is hard for us to grasp just how great this life really is until we look at it with some objectivity.  First, it is a life not led by sin, but set free by grace.  That in itself is enough of a freedom to understand that God is so wonderfully and powerfully  freeing us from the weight of guilt and shame.  Second, it is a life of love. God pouring His love over us constantly reminding us that He is so in love with us that we are never alone, never abandoned and never on our own. Third it is a life that is directed by God.  Our thoughts turn towards different things our, actions speak about different interests, the investments of our times and our abilities now take on a whole new emphasis, we stop living for the temporary and we start living for the eternal.  Fourth, it is a life full of adventures and new surprises.  God has a way of growing us in this life as we say yes to this life of abundance.

Now I want to say that I have not arrived, like Paul we have not attained it all yet , but we are pressing on to this life of fullness.  We are choosing to go after this life that is better we could have ever dreamed of.  On this third day of our time of prayer and fasting we look to God and smile and say, that's the life we want.  The one You have for us. Thanks for being faithful, thanks for pushing us all closer to that life by saying yes to Jesus.