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Christ
is the head of the church, which is his body. He is the first of all who will
rise from the dead, so he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ, and by him God reconciled everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his blood on
the cross. This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were his
enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions, yet now he has
brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross
in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of
God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single
fault. But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly.
Don't drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.
The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been
appointed by God to proclaim it.
(Colossians 1:18-23 NLV). In a few weeks Mary and I will be
going to Aruba for a few days to enjoy the beach. It isn’t quite as exciting
to me as it is her since I grew up on the island of Galveston.
The beach wasn’t ever very far from my house! She’s done a little
research into the sights and activities that might be of interest. It seems that
the beaches are some of the best in the Caribbean. I’m looking forward to
sitting there and doing nothing more than watch the waves roll in! The more I think about it, the more it
brings me to a principle of life. The waves are like life in some ways. They
build up under the surface of the water, becoming larger and larger as the
moments tick away. Then they crest, roll over, and make a very loud noise,
bubble and foam, then finally dissipate. This is the pattern of the wave as I
have observed. Waves at the beach are never ending. One is gone, and the next
rolls in, one after another. Some are larger and louder than others are, but
they keep rolling into shore. I believe life's problems are like that. They
build up, peak, and dissipate. They may be large, small, or in-between, but they
keep on coming. They
may crash your life with a resounding bang or make a more soft and subtle noise,
but they keep on coming. They may deal with emotions, health, finances, family
relationships, or a variety of other difficulties one must face in a lifetime,
but they keep on coming. As long as we live in this world, we will face one
dilemma after another, be it large or small. The unending load gets heavy after
a while, and the waves of life can beat away at a person the same as ocean waves
pound at the shoreline. Jesus
has told us to come to Him with our burdens and He will give us rest. He said to
cast our cares upon Him, for He cares for us. He said He would send the Holy
Spirit to be our comforter and guide; to give us wisdom and the strength to
survive the battering waves of life. He promised this in the Bible to all who
will reach out to Him and believe in Him. If the constant waves of life are
beating you down, depleting life's energy out of you, like the grains of sand
that are pulled back into the ocean with each wave, call upon Jesus. He will
answer the call - you can count on Him. |
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