I believe the reason so many Christians feel frustrated or ineffective is because they are too firmly planted on earth. It’s so easy to be wooed by all the beautiful things this world has to offer. Rarely do we realize everything we see here is a cheap knock-off of the real thing. No matter how beautiful something is, it is tainted and forever obscured by sin. What we perceive as amazing is far less than ordinary when compared to the original God had in mind when He created the necessary parts of which it consists.
This isn’t an esoteric discussion; the more value we ascribe to things of the here and now, the less desire we will feel for things of eternity. Until we recognize the world we are striving for far outshines the one in which we live, we will remain too firmly anchored to the realm of death and confusion.
Our prayer should be all we find sweet here would turn bitter in our mouths. We worship the temporary stuff and give lip service to the everlasting. I know we worship it because it captures our minds throughout our days. We dream of the first home or the bigger home. Our aspirations are fixed on the next promotion. We focus our attention on those people and possessions that will make us feel special, safe, and significant. At the root, we worship ourselves and bring daily sacrifices to our god.
Oh Father, forgive us our selfishness. May we loathe all that is not You. Fix our desires on things not of this world. May every breath be breathed for Your glory.
That is my prayer but it is not our reality. How dangerously close we are to living under the judgment of people who profess Him with their mouth’s but ignore Him with their lives. We cannot let the world and its short-sided glory deceive us. We cannot allow flesh and blood to trump the Spirit of God. Satan continuously seeks to destroy by deceiving us to believe the lies he speaks. The devil lures us with pleasures and comforts he knows will appeal to our fallen nature. We must run away into the arms of Jesus, the only place we will ever find true safety and comfort.
We are not of this world; this is not our home. Having been designed for Heaven, we will never be quite comfortable here. There will always be a longing for something else, something more. Our soul desires to be one with its Creator. Until that day, we will be restless wanderers seeking solace in a world that cannot provide it.
We must never take our mind off of Heavenly things. Our deepest desires will be fulfilled only at the feet of Jesus. This is not our home and we must stop living as if it were. If we are not spending our days building God’s Kingdom, then we are spending it building our own. Our kingdom is guaranteed to fall. His Kingdom will stand for eternity. Don’t be deceived by the imitation comfort, beauty, and pleasure you see around you. This is not our home. Let us live for what matters.