Life is short.  The bible says that “the days of our lives are seventy years; and if reason of strength they are eighty years…so teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90: 10-12).

A huge part of that wisdom is to live out our lives in a manner that is pleasing to God, in whom we will all give an account to some day.

Proverbs reminds us that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (9:10).  It starts with “salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus!”  The greatest wisdom of all is to realize our desperate need for Jesus!  The bible says “as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1: 12).  At the inception of that “new birth” we have new meaning and purpose!  Yes, we will still suffer persecution and have trials and things that will shack us to our very core - but we have Christ - therefore we can endure!  But God wants us to do more than endure, He wants us to thrive!  To thrive even in the midst of hardships.  The apostle Paul is a great example of this.  He was not a “super christian,” he was like you and I.  But he filled his heart with the word of God and invested in the eternal, everlasting Kingdom of God and THRIVED!  The late Rev. Billy Graham said, “The Spirit of God takes the Word of God and makes the child of God.”  The child of God and the word of God should be inseparable.  Not only for faith, but for practice - for manner of life!  The bible says that “blessed is the man (child of God) who delights and meditates on His word.  He/she shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither (cf. Psalm 1: 1-3).  Along that same thought Jeremiah reminds us in chapter 7, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD.  For he will be like a tree planted by the waters…and will not fear when heat comes…will not be anxious in the year of the drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit” (17: 7-8).

I don’t know about you, but I am tired of enduring, I want to thrive!  

“Lord Jesus, help us to thrive in these last days!”  Amen 

Pastor Rodney