DAY 6: Life is a Temporary Assignment

Psalm 39:4

LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.

I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me.

( Psalm 119:19)

Life here on earth is a temporary assignment.

Life is described as a mist, a fast runner, a breath, and a wisp of smike.

To make the most of my life, I must always remember these two truths: First, compared with eternity, life is extremely brief. Second, earth is only a temporary residence, I will not be here for lone, so I shouldn’t get too attached. I need to ask God to help me see life on earth as He sees it.

“Lord, help me to realize how brief my time on earth will be. Help me to know that I am here for but a moment more.”

The Bible constantly reminds us that this is not our home, that we are only here temporarily, we are living in a foreign country and this is not my final destination. Real believers understand that there is far more to life than just the few years we live on this planet.

My identity is in eternity, and my homeland is in heaven. Is yours? When you grasp the truth, you will stop worrying about “having it all: on earth.  God is very straight forward about the danger of living for the here and now and adopting the values, priorities, and lifestyles of the world around us. When we flirt with the temptations of this world, God calls it spiritual adultry.

“You are cheating on God if all you want is your own way…you will end up becoming an enemy of God and His way.”

Imagine if you were asked by your country to be an ambassador to an enemy nation. You would probably have to learn a new language and adapt to some customs and cultural differences in order to be polite and to accomplish your mission, you would have to have contact and relate to them.

Suppose you became so comfortable with this foreign country and you preferred it to your homeland. Your loyalty and commitment would change. Your role as an ambassador would be compromised. Instead of representing your home country, you would start acting like your enemy. You’d be a traitor. We are Christ’s ambassadors.

Sadly, many Christians have betrayed their King and His kingdom. They have foolishly concluded that because they live on earth, it’s their home.

“Those in frequent contact with the things of this world should make good use of them without becoming attached to them, for this world and all it contains will pass away.”

Compared with other centuries, life has never been easier for much of the Western world. They are constantly entertained, amused, and catered to. With all the fascinating attractions, mesmerizing media, and enjoyable experiences available today, it is easy to forget that the pursuit of happiness is not what life is about. Only as we remember that life is a test, a trust and a temporary assignment will the appeal of these things lose their grip on our lives. We are preparing for something even better.

“The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.”

The fact that earth is not our ultimate home explains why, as followers of Jesus, we experience difficulty, sorrow, and rejection in this world. It also explains why some of God’s promises seem unfulfilled, some prayers seem unanswered, and some circumstances seem unfair. This is not the end of the story.

My identity is in eternity, and

My homeland is heaven

In order for us to not feel too attached on earth, God allows us to feel a significant amount of discontent, dissatisfaction in life-longings that will NEVER be fulfilled on this side of eternity. We’re not completely happy here because we’re not supposed to be! Earth is not our final home; because we were created for something much better.

A fish would never be happy living on land, because it was made for water. An eagle could never feel satisfied if it wasn’t allowed to fly. I will never feel completely satisfied on earth, because I was made for more. Yes, I will have happy moments here, but it will be NOTHING compared with what God has planned for me. J

“All that is not eternal is eternally useless.” (C.S. LEWIS)

It is a fatal mistake to think that all that God has planned for me is material prosperity, or popular success , as the world defines it. The abundant life has nothing to do with material abundance, and faithfulness to God does not guarantee success in a career or even a ministry. NEVER FOCUS ON TEMPORARY CROWNS.

Paul was faithful, yet he ended up in prison. John the Baptist was faithful, but he was beheaded.

Millions of faithful people have been martyred, have lost everything, or have come to the end of life with nothing to show for it. But the end of life is not the end.

In God’s eyes, the greatest heroes of faith are not those who achieve prosperity, success, and power in this life, but those who treat life as this temporary assignment and serve faithfully, expecting their promised reward in eternity. Your time on earth is not the complete story of your life. You must wait until heaven for the rest of the chapters. It takes faith to live on earth as a foreigner.

A missionary was returning home on to America on the same ship as the president of the United States. Cheering crowds, a military band, a red carpet, banners, and the media welcomed the president home, but the missionary slipped off the ship quietly unnoticed. Feeling self pityand resentment, he began complaining to God. Then God gently reminded him, “But my child, you’re not home yet.”

 You will not be in heaven two seconds before you cry out: “Why did I place so much importance in things that were so temporary? What was I thinking? Why did I waste so much energy, and concern on what such temporary things?”

Christ is worth the effort, remember you are not home yet. At death you won’t leave home you’ll GO home.

Earth is not my final home;

I was created for

Something much better

Point to ponder on: This world is not my home

Verse:

“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2Corinthians 4:18)

Question to consider:
How should the fact that life on earth is just a temporary assignment change the way I am living right now?

Ethnicity and Colour; The Divders

It is funny how the term ‘racist’ came into being.  From what I know, there is only one race of people in this world; and that is the human race.  That’s right.  The human race.  So how did colour come in?  How did ethnicity creep into the picture? Since when did political boundaries and territorial borders become more important than human life?

 As far as the history of the world goes, ethnicity and colour somehow had the power to divide the human race.  For example; Hitler believed that the Aryan people were the superior race and he led the Nazis to exterminate the Jews.  Back then in the 17^th century, the Europeans took Africans as slaves to America.  It seemed as though the colour of one’s skin determined a person’s character back then, so the Africans were called ‘Blacks.’ And then you have the crisis in Syria.  The ISIS killing innocent people in the name of Religion!? And just across the border we hear of the bloody massacre of the West Papuans by the Indonesians.  One can only imagine the oppression these people were and are going through.  Unfortunately the list does not end there…….

Watching a movie like ‘Hotel Rwanda’ changes your perspective. About life.  About death.  About peace.  And about freedom.  The friction between the Hutus and the Tutsis burned away the hopes and the livelihood of the future of Rwanda.  The Tutsis were the minority in Rwanda.  Being a Tutsi spelt danger and death.  Every Tutsi man, woman and child lived and moved with the fear of being killed anytime and anywhere. The smell of death was as real as air itself, only that it was graver. 

The movie depicts the love of a man for his wife and his sacrifices to save his family.  He is a Hutu and is married to a Tutsi woman.  Caught in between his ethnic group and that of his wife, Paul struggles to come up with ideas that will save him and his family.  He also had to put his life on the line to save a few of the Tutsis.  In such an ethnic clash, harbouring the enemy could end your life and that of your family.  But being an honourable man who always believed in doing the right thing, Paul set his heart on leaving ethnicity out of the picture and saving the lives of innocent people whose characters and life he chose to value.  

In Rwanda, all it took to be eligible for death was to be a Tutsi.  For a Hutu, one had to be loyal to his or her ethnic group.  If you were suspected of being a Tutsi spy, you would be tortured to the point of death.  The content of one’s character hardly counted.  In the Hutus eyes, all Tutsis were cockroaches; not worthy of living.  They had to be eliminated from Rwanda, and that was the awful truth.

Children; babies, toddlers and teenagers who could have lived out their childhood days have been slaughtered in the name of ethnicity.  For those who survived, the images and sounds of guns and machetes have been etched into their childhood memories.  Watching their families and people suffer at the merciless hands of the Hutus must have been a horrific torture.  No child ever deserves to witness a bloody warfare or to killed in the name of ethnicity.  Is peace too much to ask for?  Is the price for freedom and equality worth a human life?

Colour and ethnicity; two powerful words.  Powerful enough to draw a line between you and me.  Between what’s yours and what’s mine. Powerful enough to steal one’s happiness, take away one’s family and destroy an empire built on happiness. Eliminating an ethnic group from the earth makes the world less diverse.  I’m sure God had his reasons for creating the human race the way it is.  I’m sure He meant to colour up the world and teach us a lesson to learn to live with one another.  What’s to gain from all the killing?  Wealth?  Power? Glory?  That question can only be answered by one who believes in the human race.

 Watching ‘Hotel Rwanda’ changed the way I look at people.  Each and every individual is fighting a battle no one knows about.  It’s time to be a lot more kinder to familiar faces you see every day.  The may not be going through something like the genocide that took place in Rwanda years back.  But a little faith and appreciation in humanity will make a difference.

If I say that I’m a racist, that simply means I believe in the human race.

By: Rayanne Nogkas (2016)

Day 5: Seeing Life from God’s View

What is your life? (James 1:14b)

We don’t see things as they are

We see them as we are

-Anais Nin-

The way I see my life shapes my life. How I define life will determine my destiny, my perspective will influence how I invest my time, spend my money, use my talents and value my relationships.

One of the best ways to understand people is to ask them, “How do you see your life?”  you will discover that there are many differences to the question, just as there are many different people in this world.

People describe life in many different terms: as a circus, a minefield, a roller coaster, a puzzle, a symphony, a journey, and a dance. People have said, “life is a carousel: sometimes you’re up, sometimes your down, and sometimes you just go round and round” and so on. But I should ask myself, how I picture my own life, I wonder what image would come into my mind, and whatever image comes would be a metaphor of my life. People often express their life metaphor through clothes, jewellery, cars, hairstyles, bumper stickers, even tattoos. But our unspoken life metaphor influences our lives more than we realize and it determines our expectations, values, relationships, goals and priorities. For example, if I think life is a party, my primary value in life would be to have fun. If I see my life as a race, I will value speed and will probably be in a hurry most of the time. If I viewed my life as a marathon, I’d value endurance. If I see my life as a battle or a game, winning will be very important to me.

So what is my view of life? What if I am basing my life on a faulty metaphor?n to fulfil the purposes God made you for, you will have to challenge conventional wisdom and replace it with the Biblical metaphors of life. There are three metaphors that teach us God’s views of life:

Life is a test, life is a trust, and life is a temporary assignment.  These ideas are the foundation of purpose-driven living.

Life on earth is a test. This is seen in the Bible stories. God continually tests people’s character, faith, obedience, love, integrity, and loyalty. Words life trials, temptations, refining, and testing occur more than 200 times in the Bible. God tested Abraham by asking him to offer his son Isaac; Jacob was tested when he had to work extra years to earn Rachel as his wife.

Adam and Eve failed their test in the Garden of Eden, and David failed his tests from God on several occasions but the Bible does give many examples of people who did past the great test, such as Joseph, Ruth, Ester and Daniel.

Character is developed and revealed by tests, and all of life is a test. We are always being tested. God constantly watches us for our responses to people, problems, success, conflicts, illness, disappointment and even the weather. Even the most simplest actions such as opening the door for others, picking up a rubbish or being polite to the genitor or the gardener; God watches all our actions. We don’t know all the tests God will give, but we can predict that it will be based on the Bible.

We will also be tested by major chances, delayed promises, impossible problems, unanswered prayers, undeserved criticism, and even senseless tragedies. God also will test my faith through problems, tests my hope by how I handle possessions, and tests my love through people. The major test in life will be how we act when we cannot feel God’s presence in our lives.

A king named Hezekiah experienced this test. Hezekiah had enjoyed a close fellowship with God, but at a crucial point in his life God left him alone to test his character, to reveal a weakness, and to prepare him for more responsibility.

When I realize that life is a test, nothing is insignificant in my life. Even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen my character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God. Some tests may seem overwhelming, while others you don’t even notice. But all of them have eternal implications.

Character is both developed

And revealed by tests,

And all of life is a test

 The good news is that God wants me to pass the tests of life, so He will never allow me to face a test that is greater than the grace He gives me to handle.

“God keeps his promise, and he will not allow you to be tested beyond your power to remain firm; at the time you are put to the test, he will give you the strength to endure it, and so provide you with a way out.”

Every time we pass a test, God notices and makes plans to reward me in eternity.

“Blessed are those who endure when they are tested, when they pass the test, they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him”

Life on earth is a Trust. This is the second biblical metaphor of life. Energy, intelligence, opportunities, relationships and resources here on earth are all gifts from God and He has entrusted this in my care and management. We are stewards of whatever God gives us.

Nothing here on earth is ours; it is loaned to us from God while we are here. It was God’s property before I arrived, and God will loan it to someone else after I die. This world lives by: “If you don’t own it, you won’t take care of it.” But Christians live by a higher standard: “Because God owns it, I must take best care of it that I can.”

“Those who are trusted with something valuable must show they are worthy of that trust.”

 Jesus often referred to life as a trust and told many stories to illustrate this responsibility toward God.

At the end of our lives here on earth we will be evaluated and rewarded according to how well we handled what God hath entrusted to us on earth. This means that EVERYTHING that I do, even the SIMPLE DAILY CHORES, has eternal implications. If I treat everything as trust, God promises three rewards in eternity:

God will say to me: “Well done!” then I will receive a promotion and be given a greater responsibility in eternity and finally, I will be honoured with a celebration.

The more God gives me,

The more responsible He

Expects me to be

Most people fail to realize that money is both a test and a trust from God. God uses finances to teach us to trust him, and for many people, money is the greatest test of all. God watches how we use money to test how trustworthy we are.

IF YOU ARE UNTRUSTWORTHY OF ABOUT WORLDLY RICHES, WHO WILL TRUST YOU WITH THE RICHES OF HEAVEN”

This is a very important truth. There is a direct relationship between how I use my money and the quality of my spiritual life. How I manage my money (worldly wealth) determines how much God can trust me with spiritual blessings (true riches). Let me ask you:

Is the way I manage your money preventing God from doing more in my life? Can I be trusted with spiritual riches?

“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with mu, much more will be asked.”

Life is a test and a trust, and the more God gives you, the more responsible He expects you to be.

Point to ponder: Life is a test and a trust

Verse:

“He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.” (Luke 16:1)

Question to Consider:

What has happened to me recently that I now realize was a test from God? What are the greatest matters God has entrusted to me?

(A Purpose-Driven Life)

Day 4: Made to Last Forever

Ecclesiastes 3:11 – “He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.”

Surely God would have created such a being as man to exist only for a day! No, no, man was made for immortality. –Abraham Lincoln-

Earth is the staging area, it is a try out for your life in eternity-than you will here. This life is preparation for the next. You have an inborn instinct that longs for immortality. This is because God has designed me, in His image, to live for eternity.

Even though we know everyone eventually dies, death always seems unnatural and unfair. The reason we feel we should live forever is that God wired our brains with that desire! One day my heart will stop beating and that will be the end of my body and my time on earth, but it will not be the end of me, because my earthly body is just a temporary residence for my spirit.

While life on earth offers many choices, eternity offers only two: heaven or hell. Your relationship to God on earth will determine your relationship to him in eternity. If I learn to love and trust God’s Son, Jesus, I will be invited to spend the rest of eternity with him. On the other hand, if I reject his love, forgiveness, and salvation, I will spend eternity apart from God forever.

“There are two kinds of people: those who say to God ‘Thy will be done’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right then, have it your way.’ (C.S. Lewis)

Tragically, many people will have to endure eternity without God because they chose to live without him here on earth. Once I fully comprehend that there is more to life than just here and now, and I realise that life is just a preparation for eternity, I will begin to live differently. Then I will start living in light of eternity, and that will show me how to handle every relationships, task and circumstance. Suddenly many activities, goals, and even problems that seemed so important will appear trivial, petty and unworthy of my attention. The closer you live to God, the smaller everything else appears.

This life is preparation for the next

Living in the light of eternity will change your values. You will use your time and money more wisely.  You begin to place a higher premium on relationships and character instead of fame or wealth or achievements or even fun, and your priorities are recorded. Keeping up with trends, fashions and popular values just doesn’t matter as much anymore.

Death is not our termination, but our transaction into eternity, so there are eternal consequences to everything you do on earth. The most damaging aspect of contemporary living is short-term thinking. To make the most of your life, you must keep the vision of eternity continually in your mind and value it in your heart.

What is it going to be like in eternity with God? Well, basically our minds cannot comprehend the wonder and greatness of heaven. It would be like trying to describe the Internet to an ant. God has a purpose for your life on earth, but it doesn’t end here. His plan involves far more than the few decades you will spend on this planet. It’s more than “the opportunity of a lifetime”; God offers you an opportunity BEYOND your lifetime.

The only time most people think about eternity is at funerals, and then it’s often shallow, sentimental thinking, based on ignorance. You may feel it’s sullen to think about death, but actually it’s unhealthy to live in denial of death and consider what is inevitable. Only a fool would go through life unprepared for what we all know will eventually happen. We need to think MORE about eternity, not less. If you have a relationship with God through Jesus, you don’t need to fear death. It is the door to eternity. It will be the last hour of your time on earth, but it won’t be the last of you. Rather than being the end of your life, it will be the birth day of your eternal life.

This world is not our home; we are looking forward to our everlasting home in heaven

Measured against eternity, our time on earth is just a blink of an eye, but the consequences of it will last forever. The deeds of this life are the destiny of the next. We should be “realizing that every moment we spend in these earthly bodies is time spent away from our eternal home in heaven with Jesus.”

Point to ponder: There is more to life than just here and now

Verse to Remember:

  “And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” (I John2:17)

Question to Consider: Since I was made to last forever, what is the one thing I should stop doing and the one thing I should start doing today?

(A Purpose-Driven Life)