Get ready to start a journey…a journey through the pages of the Bible and the pages of your life.
The great apostle Paul was a realist. He said, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.” Then he noted that he wasn’t there yet; he had not “already achieved these things.” Can you relate? You are not where you want to be in your spiritual journey.
All believers should wear a T-shirt that says UNDER CONSTRUCTION. We are unfinished projects. God started a good work in us, but he’s not finished. He will “continue his work until it is finally finished.” It will be finished when we take our last breath.
Here is a powerful story from a friend of mine named Mike. It affirms that God’s grace is sufficient! His power is always made perfect in our weakness.
Many people live with a “scarcity” mindset, a glass-half-empty philosophy that is always focused on the “What if this happens?” or “What if it doesn’t happen?” The “scarcity” mindset is not the needed process of risk management; it is the problem of being risk averse. “Scarcity” is always based in the fear of inadequacy. “I’ll never have what I need.” “I’ll never measure up.” “I’ll never be able to find satisfaction.”
What happens when you die? The soul sleeps? Time is spent in a holding place? Purgatory? Nothing? No, no, no, and absolutely no! The Bible is clear that when believers die, they pass from death to life in heaven. As Paul wrote in today’s passage, when we are away from the body, we are at home with the Lord.
The spiritual life is superhuman. The things God calls me to are beyond my capabilities. The tasks before me are outside my skill set. The spiritual journey outpaces my strength. Check out Paul’s dose of reality in today’s passage. We are not “qualified to do anything on our own.” Say it with me, “I am unqualified.” When you admit that, things start getting good!