For Those Who Thirst

So many people I meet struggle with much pain in their lives.  Often, they turn to their own means of compensating or coping with it.  Many times their solutions are debasing and destructive.  They may not even know why they do what they do.  Is it something that happened to them?  Or maybe it is their sin nature?  Are they evil?  They fear it is one or all of them.  They feel helpless and hopeless.  Lost in the power of the hurt, habit, or hang-up. 

The Lord has been showing this struggle to me.  It is a lesson in understanding their feeling of futility.  The help and the hope people need seems just out of reach, but that is a lie from the pit of hell.  God is able to do more than we can ask or think.  He can make us whiter than snow.  He can give us peace .. he can give us a new understanding of ourselves and a vision for the future. If only ....

Very often - we on the outside - observing the lives of others wonder why they don't just fix themselves - change their lives - why they seem to be content with being enslaved to their circumstances and past hurts.  We might even take a position of judgement and condemnation. A position that is not ours to take.  Perhaps we fear that showing grace and mercy towards others might have the effect of enabling the behavior. When we show grace and mercy toward others it is never acceptance of the behavior but an understanding of the root cause and sharing the cure which is faith in Jesus.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already" - John 3:16-18

We must capture the essence of what it means to be a new creature in Christ.  It is the "in Christ" part that we miss so often. And then we must be ready to reach out and offer living water to those who thirst.

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone