I am not waiting to be rescued!

About 10 pm last night I turned off the television after watching several earnest people offer to ‘fix’ America if they are elected to the Presidency of this great nation. There were a few interesting ideas but mostly it was a rewarming of things I have heard from politicians for most of my adult life. No single choice is going to restore economic prosperity, make our streets safer, help students with huge bills for higher education, make Social Security solvent again, or answer the riddles of illegal immigration.  Don’t stop reading just yet. This is not a political blog.

As I prayed before going to sleep, the Spirit whispered in my heart, “Jerry, are you part of the solution?” America’s problems are not just coming from Washington, DC and they are certainly not just political. America’s greatest need is a spiritual one.  Where Self rules unchallenged, there will be problems.  Where the Spirit defeats Self and Sin, there will be life that is rich in the best things – love, joy, peace – which are better than economic prosperity!

Spiritual renewal starts with me.  Transformation begins when I humble myself before the Lord and deal with my own sins. Easy? Not at all. Does it make everything better in a day? You surely know the answer to that.  But, a person who is filled with God’s Spirit, who loves, who lives with contentment, who walks in steady faithfulness, who keeps his word, honors his covenants, and encourages his neighbor makes a difference.  This great passage says we become a fragrance spreading through the world we live in.  "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God." (2 Corinthians 2:14-17, NIV)

Let’s not wait to be rescued!  Let’s stop lusting for things that will only soothe our troubled hearts for a short time. Let’s ask God for wisdom and power – and become part of the answer.  Wait! Do not heave that sigh and slip into resigned apathy as you defeat yourself by thinking – “What difference can I make?”  All the talk of BIG solutions and CHANGING THE WORLD can hide the fact that you and I matter in the scheme of things. If our love for Jesus helps us to make just a few lives better it is important.  One person made a decision about 75 years ago that changed the course of my life.  When my Granddaddy heard the Gospel preached by a young woman evangelist in a tent revival in Truesdale, IA, sometime around 1940, he became a follower of Christ.  He had no idea that his choice was would be a world-changing one. But, from that one humble change came a trickle that became a stream and is now a river of influence for the Kingdom of God!  Uncounted thousands of people have heard about Jesus because my Grandpa knelt and made a decision for Him!

The life of the Spirit goes deep. He causes us to love, moves us to serve, gives us generous hearts, and lifts our vision to a life that is built around things far more significant than sex, food, power, and money!  Here is a word from the Word. Meditate on it and be part of God’s answer today, right where you live. "Jesus took his stand. He cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Rivers of living water will brim and spill out of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way, just as the Scripture says.” (John 7:37-38, The Message)

_______

Enough

You're my supply, my breath of life,

Still more awesome than I know.

You're my reward, worth living for,

Still more awesome than I know,

And…

All of You is more than enough for all of me;

For ev'ry thirst and ev'ry need.

You satisfy me with Your love

And all I have in You is more than enough!

You're my sacrifice of greatest price,

Still more awesome than I know.

You're my coming King ,You are ev'rything,

Still more awesome than I know.

More than all I want,
more than all I need.

You are more than enough for me.

More than all I know,

more than all I can say,

You are more than enough!

Chris Tomlin | Louie Giglio

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