WE CAN HAVE A “DO OVER” FOR MANY THINGS, BUT NOT FOR OUR LIFETIME ON EARTH

BIBLE PASSAGE:
Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the
faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to
godliness—in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie,
promised before the beginning of time, and which now at his appointed
season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me
by the command of God our Savior.
(Titus 1:1-3)

MEDITATION:
God made mankind different from all the other creatures. He made us
in His own image, which includes a living soul. Our earthly lives are
mortal, but our soul is not. When our body dies, our soul continues to
live on forever. Our finite body decays, but our soul will be joined with
a new body when we are a part of God’s family.

Each person has been given a lifetime here on earth. It’s a one-time gift
and not one that can be ‘re-lived’ when it’s over. Whether people admit
it or not, all of us have a desire and hope of living an eternal life. Life is
a representation of something good, but death is not.

“Life” means spending an eternity with the Lord in heaven. “Death” means
spending an eternity separated from the Lord while suffering endless agony.
“Death” includes a painful physical agony in the lake of fire, but it also includes
an emotional agony of seeing what we could have had, if we had used our life  
as we should have (which includes surrendering our lives to the Lord).

There’s no escape for anyone who squanders their opportunity to prepare to
meet God. There will be no court of appeals for us to plead for mercy when
our earthly life has expired. When we have expended the lifetime we’ve been
given, will we be able to say we failed or succeeded in the use of our life?

Our life on earth is our one opportunity to prepare ourselves for how we will
spend eternity. It is also a time span for followers of Jesus to point others to
Him and His free gift of salvation. If we don’t adequately prepare ourselves
to meet the Lord, then regardless of whether we have succeeded in everything
else, we will have failed in the use of the life God has given us.

Paul realized the importance of the life he was given, and after he was
transformed by God, he dedicated himself to pointing others to Jesus
through his preaching. Obviously, God doesn’t call everyone to be a
pastor or missionary, but He does have a purpose for everyone who
receives His gift of salvation.

We have each been given special skills and talents to be used in serving Him.
In addition, when we receive salvation, the Holy Spirit and a spiritual gift is
included to help us serve the God who saved us. We should consider it a new
and exciting part of our life to participate in His ministry, and to see how the
Lord orchestrates our lives and helps us use what He has given us.

Some spend a lifetime completing tasks assigned to them by a corporation.
However, there are some who are never recognized for their efforts. Even
when they do more than is required of them, upper management overlooks
their efforts, and sometimes other co-workers receive the credit for what
they have done.

God’s standards are quite different from mankind’s. He doesn’t show any
favoritism, so those who serve Him will receive His blessings for their efforts.
God sees and knows when we are serving Him, and we will be rewarded by
Him in the way He has determined is best for us.

ACTION:
Questions to consider:
    – How am I using the life that I have been given?
    – Have I allowed my selfish desires to override what the Lord expects of me?
    – Am I more focused on my mortal life, than I am my eternal life?
    – Are there any changes I should make regarding
       my goals, attitudes, actions and outlook?
    – Do I know the spiritual gift God has given me?
    – If I am standing face to face with the Lord,
       what can I tell Him about how I have served Him?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for creating me and giving me
an opportunity to spend eternity with You. Thank you for the
promised eternal life in Christ, and for the peace I can have
because of this triumphant promise! Forgive me if I have been
selfish and lost sight of what You expect of me. Show me how
to refocus and prepare now for how I will spend eternity. Teach
me how to share the good news of Jesus and Your gift of salvation
with those around me. Show me how to use the skills, talents and
the special spiritual gift You have given me, for Your purpose and
glory.”

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