The following is my contribution to the Oak Grove Baptist Church Newsletter for July 2020:
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.” – 1 Corinthians 4:16 (NKJV)
You been spending a lot of time at home? Yeah… me too. In fact, most everyone I know has been. You would think we were told to or something? All kidding aside, many I’ve talked to have had about as much of staying at home as they care to have.
That said, the news shows us daily where destruction and chaos seemingly runs amok in American streets. We may want to go outside, but things are crazier than we would like them to be. While Hugo is getting new streets locally, it would seem that many places are getting hammered by looting, vandalism, and who knows what else? America is hurting, without question, and I know that Jesus is the answer, even though many appear uninterested in that answer.
So where does that leave us? Depression from the overall situation can immobilize us if we allow it, but we Christians know that there is more to life than what we see here, good or bad. While the world has its ever-increasing issues, we are responsible before the Lord for who we are in the midst of it. While the world is whittled away, we must endeavor to build ourselves up spiritually. With what, you might ask? Well, we draw our strength from the Lord, not from the things of this world.
After years of work in the funeral industry, I can tell anyone reading this that unless Christ comes first for His people, you will die one day. It’s a fact. Every year of life we have in this world, we experience an increasing amount of hurts and bruises that wear these bodies down, but beyond all of this, we are a soul that will outlast it all. The condition of that soul in the eyes of God is really all that matters in the end.
More than any distinguishing factor we exhibit, your soul is who you really are. Are you using this time to grow closer in the Lord’s example? The news will depress you, but God’s Word will sustain you throughout. Rely on it, because God’s not done with you yet!
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