Day 13: Jesus Is Everything
WHAT IF LIFE IS ONE BIG YAY!
It is quite simple,
yet complicated at the same time,
when we choose not to
BELIEVE
what is true.
Yet somehow,
it is quite simple to
BELIEVE
what isn't true,
because it can be so much easier to accept
those voices in your head
that tell you
YOU AREN'T GOOD ENOUGH,
because you could always be better.
And that
LIFE IS LIFE~
nothing less
and
nothing more.
You wake up,
start doing your thing,
and hope that something good will happen.
And if it does,
there is a
YAY!
And if it doesn't,
there is that
UGH!
And then maybe,
just maybe,
if you are lucky enough,
another
YAY!
will come your way.
Is that it~
Is that what we are living for?
Riding a roller coaster of
YAYS & UGHS
and hoping that there are more
YAYS
than
UGHS?
But...
WHAT IF LIFE IS ONE BIG YAY!
No matter what happens or doesn't happen.
No matter what changes or doesn't change.
No matter whether we feel like
YAYING
or not.
Hmm.
WHAT IF
there is something
MORE
to
BELIEVE
that goes way beyond
OURSELVES?
What if we
BELIEVED
that we aren't just passing through this life,
checking off our to-do lists,
surviving one moment at a time
while waiting for a
GREATER MOMENT
to come along?
And then hoping that
GREATER MOMENT
will last
FOREVER.
Oh...
WHAT IF~
"Long before HE laid down earth's foundations, HE had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of HIS love, to be made whole and holy by HIS love..."
(Ephesians 1:4 MSG).
WHAT IF~
"Long, long ago HE decided to adopt us into HIS family through JESUS CHRIST. (What pleasure HE took in planning this!) HE wanted us to enter into the celebration of HIS lavish gift-giving by the hand of HIS beloved SON..."
(Ephesians 1:5–6 MSG).
WHAT IF~
"Because of the sacrifice of the MESSIAH, HIS blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we're a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free"
(Ephesians 1:7 MSG).
WHAT IF~
"HE thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans HE took such delight in making..."
(Ephesians 1:8–9 MSG).
WHAT IF~
"HE set it all out before us IN CHRIST, a long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up IN HIM, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth"
(Ephesians 1:10 MSG).
And what if we
BELIEVED~
"It's IN CHRIST that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of CHRIST and got our hopes up, HE had HIS eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose HE is working out in everything and everyone."
(Ephesians 1:11–12 MSG).
WHAT IF~
"It's IN CHRIST that you, once you heard the truth and BELIEVED IT, found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from GOD is the first installment on what's coming, a reminder that we'll get everything GOD has planned for us, a praising and glorious life"
(Ephesians 1:13–14 MSG).
Oh...
WHAT IF YOU JUST BELIEVED IT ALL?
Not just read it.
Not just heard it.
Not just knew the words.
But
BELIEVED IT.
That
YOU ARE LOVED.
YOU ARE CHOSEN IN CHRIST.
YOU ARE FORGIVEN IN CHRIST.
YOU ARE REDEEMED IN CHRIST.
YOU ARE ADOPTED INTO HIS FAMILY THROUGH CHRIST.
YOU ARE SIGNED, SEALED & DELIVERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT.
And that your life
IN CHRIST
is so much more than a series of
YAYS & UGHS.
Oh...
WHAT IF
you woke up tomorrow and nothing changed?
The same problems.
The same disappointments.
The same unanswered prayers.
The same
UGHS.
Would you still have a reason to say
YAY?
Oh
YES!
Not because everything in life is
GOOD.
Not because everything feels
GOOD.
Not because you are guaranteed more
YAYS than UGHS.
But because
JESUS IS GOOD.
And when you are
IN CHRIST,
your greatest
YAY
isn't dependent upon what happens
TO YOU.
It is found in
WHO LIVES IN YOU.
Because the
UGHS
of life cannot undo what
JESUS accomplished on the CROSS.
They cannot erase HIS GRACE.
They cannot cancel HIS MERCY.
They cannot change HIS TRUTH.
And they cannot take away the eternal life HE has given you.
Oh...
WHAT IF
we stopped allowing what happens
AROUND US
to determine what we
BELIEVE
about the
ONE WHOLIVES WITHIN US?
Hmm.
Maybe LIFE isn't one big
YAY
because everything that happens is worth celebrating.
Maybe LIFE is one big YAY
because
JESUS IS WORTH CELEBRATING
in the middle of
EVERYTHING.
So...
WHAT IF
YOU JUST BELIEVED IT ALL?
What would your days be like
NOW?
Would you still have
UGHS?
Oh, absolutely.
But would those
UGHS
have the final word?
NO.
Because
JESUS HAS THE FINAL WORD.
And that, my friend,
is worth one great big
YAY!
WHAT IF~
You stopped waiting for life to give you a reason
to celebrate and started celebrating
the ONE
WHO gave you REAL LIFE.
Because
"JESUS LIFTED ME"
(listen to the song below)
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