Too often, unawaringly, we prefer to be short-changed!
How, you
ask? No one wants to be short-changed!
Too often we forsake
establishing a relationship with our Heavenly Father. We miss getting to
know Him. We miss His willingness to help us. However, we hardly ever
ask for His help. We are in "control", but when adversity hits, we are
left wanting.
If we take the time to get to know Him, this verse
(Rom 8:32) will become our reality. After all, Jesus gave His all to
save us, showing us His genuine love. No strings attached. Jesus became
one of us, leaving heaven to give us the opportunity to discover who our
Heavenly Father is.
Jesus' disciples followed Him. They were
attracted to Him. However, they were so focused on themselves that they
completely missed why He came here in the first place. They often fought
with one another, and many times they even doubted.
Once Jesus
was arrested, they all fled and hid themselves from the Romans. Even
though Jesus had told them many times what His role was in the matter,
they had no clue who Jesus was: "Then Jesus made it clear to his
disciples that it was now necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, submit
to an ordeal of suffering at the hands of the religious leaders, be
killed, and then on the third day be raised up alive. Peter took him in
hand, protesting, 'Impossible, Master! That can never be!'" (Matt
16:21-22, MSG)
They kept on doubting until they met the Risen One
face to face. All doubt evaporated. They had seen Him dead, pierced in
the heart, and now they were seeing Him alive, with pierced hands. Those
disciples who were cowering in a hidden place when Jesus was arrested,
became truly bold (See the book of Acts). Nothing could stop them. They
had experienced the Risen One: "Later on that day, the disciples had
gathered together, but, fearful of the Jews, had locked all the doors in
the house. Jesus entered, stood among them, and said, "Peace to you.
Then he showed them his hands and side. The disciples, seeing the Master
with their own eyes, were exuberant." (John 20: 19-20, MSG)
All
of them, except John, died as martyrs, with smiles on their faces,
because they knew where they were heading: "You know the way to the
place where I am going." (John 14:4, NIV)
If we doubt, I
recommend that we all work on experiencing the Risen One. It will change
our lives radically. How can we do this? Quite simple: We ask Jesus to
reveal Himself through prayer. We show our hunger to know Him, and He
will reveal Himself: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will
find; knock and the door will be opened to you." (Matt 7:7, NIV2) After
all, He loves us and proved it through His supreme sacrifice.
Too
often, we worry over nothing. At times, we forget to rely solely on our
Father, and that's when worries spring up.
Last year we visited
Germany and Poland. We flew with our national airline. However, at the
end of our trip, my wife and I had to fly with Luftansa to Barcelona
where we would take our plane home. My oldest son had to leave earlier,
and he, too, had to fly with Luftansa to Portugal, to get his plane
heading for home.
When we booked our tickets, Luftansa was having
strikes on and off. We thought it would be over once we were there.
After all, we had booked our planes 8 months in advance. Unfortunately
this wasn't the case. Every day we were in Germany, there were talks
about more strikes.
I immediately made plans about how to get my
son to Portugal and plans for me and my wife how to reach Barcelona. It
would be brutal but feasible. Every day I checked the news. It wasn't
too good!
Interestingly enough, when I gave my worries to Jesus,
peace invaded my heart. We would be okay. I wished I had made that
decision months before! My son left as planned and reached home without
a hitch. The same was true for my wife and I. Are you worried? Put these
worries away, even if strikes are looming. Come to Jesus and experience
His peace in our heart. Meet the Risen One and all doubt will evaporate
into nothingness. "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come
to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how
to take a real rest." (Matt 11:28, MSG) By the way, would you be
interested in some Luftansa tickets?
Rob Chaffart
How to Evaporate our Doubts. Radical Grace from the Book of Romans (8:32)
Today's Bible Verse:
"If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us,
embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his
own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for
us?" (Rom 8:32, MSG)
How to Evaporate our Doubts. Radical Grace from the Book of Romans (8:32)
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