Losing the Temporary to Gain the Eternal

Bible readings... 
“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. (25) For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. (26) For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:24-26
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Hello everyone and welcome back to Sunday Inspiration! I pray that you will truly be blessed, as we connect deeply with God today!
 
As I think back over my life, I remember a time when God was beginning to take me away from the many years of pain and deep heartache. It seemed like overnight, I was beginning to hear His still small voice within my spirit, as words came so quickly to my thoughts; that I had to grab whatever was the closest to me, whether it was napkins, Kleenex or a scrap piece of paper that was close by.
 
As God began to take and use the long years of suffering for His good, I would keep ink pens in each room of our home and through the words He laid upon my heart, I would find myself connecting deeper and deeper with Him.
 
One thing that God did lay upon my heart, as He was beginning to work with me; was that I would have to lay myself to the side…pick up His cross and be completely devoted to Him. I found that over time, I not only gave up the things that I enjoyed the most in life but I also found myself making God the best friend I could ever have.
 
It seemed that throughout most of my life, I was giving up many things and even experiencing the loss of children and other things in my life. There were times when I felt as if I was in a world of my own but I have come to see that it’s a world that I wouldn’t trade for anything because you see…through the loss of many things in my life, I have found God, in a way that I never thought I’d experience.
 
You know…sometimes it’s not always easy to understand the moments of loss we experience. For example, some experience the loss of good health or the loss of a job; that they had always dreamed of having. No matter what we lose in life, I see it as an exchange…a time, when God is allowing something dear to our hearts to be taken away; so He can fill those empty voids with Himself. You see…He longs so much for each us to follow Him and sometimes the things we love the most can separate us from God.  
 
Today, you may be experiencing some loss in your life. No matter what it is, just know that God isn’t allowing you to experience these moments of loss, just to upset you or make you feel unloved by Him but rather, I have learned that this is God’s way of loving us the most. When He allows loss into our lives; it’s only because He wants us to gain Him in a greater way.
 
Let’s stop and ask ourselves a few questions that relate to verse 26 in our reading today. First off…what do we benefit by having everything we could ever want for our lives now, when the true and eternal life is awaiting us?  Don’t we realize that when we live for ourselves; that it’s so easy to find out later; that we have lost the One who should always be the dearest to our hearts?  Is anything that valuable in life, when compared to the soul? These things that we enjoy in this life will one day pass away; but what we gain for Christ now will live on forever.
 
Through the many years of pain and loss, I can truly say that I have found the Lord. Today, I can say without a doubt that if it wasn’t for the loss in my life, I wouldn’t be sitting here today…writing you these words of encouragement and I definitely wouldn’t have a connection with God, like I do today. What about you? Are you willing to experience loss; that you may gain God in a greater way?
Blessings on your Sunday!
It’s Always & Only Because of Him…
Diane
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