Faith... for things not seen

Is your heart weighed down by the troubles of this world?

Are you weary;

Thinking more about when you might have rest,

than remembering your old hopes and dreams?

This has weighed so heavily on me; especially these last few months.

All around us, people are really struggling - and not for success or rewards.

They're struggling to keep a roof over their heads and they have long since accepted what is cheap rather than seeking what is good.

It's contagious, isn't it? The fear. The edge of panic.

This is a dark time in America.

I fear it will be getting worse and I HATE it.

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Where am I looking, friends?!

I didn't see it until Hebrews 11 came up in my Bible reading this morning.

I am looking at the cares of this world. And letting them consume me!

If you are caught in this same dreadful, doomsday trap, please take some time and read Hebrews 11.

Read it like your life depends on it. Really.

Read it right now.

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The rest of this post is just my two cents... and probably worth about as much.

But if you're interested in discovering my take on the greatest challenge of our lives, keep reading :-)

"Are you accepting what is cheap rather than seeking what is good?"

The things that we see, the cares of this world, those things are cheap - fleeting when compared with the riches of eternity.

Are you, like me, so caught up in the cares of this world that you have forgotten your real reward?

If you are, please know my heart is breaking for you - the pain is real. The worries are valid. And the love you feel matters more than you even realize.

But know this... you are (we are) being sucked into a lie.

The lie that our lives on this earth are anything but mere flashes in the vast, vast expanse of eternity.

And that is our promise... eternity. Eternal life. Life without fear, worry, lack...

Why then am I allowing myself to be so caught up in worldly concerns?!

I guess I need encouragement?

I desire a reminder of my ultimate reward tucked into the safety of a comfortable life.

Yet neither Moses, nor Abraham - not even Jesus! received their promises before they died.

I gloss over that when reading the Bible and thinking about their faith... because I know how their stories end.

And I know that G-d was/is faithful to the promises He made.

Don't I know how my story ends?!

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I have faith in what is not seen. I believe that Jesus died for our sins so that we could be made perfect.

I believe He has prepared a place for us, those who believe in Him, in heaven. We will live there for eternity.

I bet you do too.

And I also believe that I will be required to account for my deeds, whether good or evil (c.f. 2 Cor. 5:10).

At the end of my days, I do not want to return Home with a story about how I made a wonderful life. Or even about how I dedicated myself to others' comfort and lack!

I'd much rather return with stories of praise and worship during the hard times;

With evidence that I lived believing, like Moses, that I am a stranger in this foreign land.

Don't get me wrong, I believe G-d works all things for good to those who are called according to His purpose (c.f. Rom 8:28). And I expect to see blessings, abundance and plenty in my life (c.f. Prov 3:9). But I want to have lived in a way that makes it clear that I knew the reward (of heaven) was more precious than all the treasures of the world - more dear than life itself.

In Hebrews, we read that Moses went so far as to reject his place in society, refusing to even be known as a son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He didn't hate the Egyptians. He gave up his place because it would have required him to sin. And that meant relinquishing his place with the LORD. In fact, he chose even to share ill-treatment with the people of God rather than to give up his faith, his heritage, his identity.

"And what more should I say?

For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,

who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.

Women received their dead by resurrection.

Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection.

Others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned to death; they were sawn in two; they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented — of whom the world was not worthy.

They wandered in deserts and mountains and in caves and holes in the ground.

Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith,

did not receive what was promised,

since God had provided something better

so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect." (Heb 11:32-40. my emphasis added.)

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I pray for wisdom, if we are someday called to make the ultimate choice.

And I ask for discernment and encouragement, right now;

To help us see the compromises, the lies, and to remind us of the Truth.

Of our hope. Of His promise.

By faith, faith in things we cannot see, we can do all things.

Endure all things.

We can stand.