GOD DOESN’T GIVE UP ON YOU

When you go through difficult times in life you may question God.  You may question His whereabouts.  You may question His promises and faithfulness.  The good news is that He hasn’t left you alone in your trouble.  Notice what God said to Jeremiah when he told the people that God would discipline them for their selfish choices and rebellious attitudes:  “When you tell the people all these things, they will ask, ‘… What have we done to deserve such treatment? What is our sin against the Lord our God?’  “Then you will give them the Lord’s reply: ‘It is because … you stubbornly follow your own evil desires and refuse to listen to me.   So I will throw you out of this land and send you into a foreign land where you and your ancestors have never been … “But the time is coming,” says the Lord, “when people who are taking an oath will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who rescued the people of Israel from the land of Egypt.’ Instead, they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the people of Israel back to their own land from the land of the north and from all the countries to which he had exiled them.’ For I will bring them back to this land that I gave their ancestors” (Jer.16:10-15 NLT).

This prophecy has now become history.  The people of Israel have returned to the land promised them by the Lord and have become a nation again.  What stands out to me is that God didn’t abandon His people; He disciplined them.  He never disowns His people.  Though He judges them they’re still His.  He keeps His promises and brings His people back in line with His sovereign will.  He restores them.

The Lord disciplines His children because He loves them, but He will never abandon them.  Hebrews 12:11-13 (NLT) reminds us of the results of His discipline:  No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful!  But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.  So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.  Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.

When times get hard, whether the Lord is disciplining you or testing your faith, know that He hasn’t left you.  You’re still His, and He will restore you and your strength. 

In the middle of the trouble instead of stubbornly following your own desires and refusing to listen to God, tenaciously follow Jesus and refuse anything that keeps you from listening to Him.  In His timing He will restore you.

YOU HAVE AN ASSIGNMENT FROM HEAVEN

“Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus.  The work of telling others the good news about God’s mighty kindness and love” (Acts 20:24 TLB).

Connecting people with God is a part of every believer’s life purpose.  We each can do three things to carry out this part of our life purpose:

1. ACCEPT YOUR MISSION.

The moment you become a believer your job is to tell other people about Christ.  The moment you become a believer that mission kicks in.  And in today’s world opportunities abound to express the Good News of Christ through many avenues.  That’s our mission.

2. GO WITH GOOD NEWS.

Reasons we give for not talking about our faith are that we feel shy or insecure or afraid of what others will think of us or rejection.  But these aren’t the real reasons we don’t tell others the good news.  The real reason is we forget how good the good news really is.  We become comfortable and complacent with it and we forget what a deal we really have.  If we’ll think about it and realize how good it is, we can’t help but tell people about it.  It’s such good news. 

The Good News can be summarized in three words:

Fulfillment, Freedom, and Forgiveness.  This is what everyone wants.  As a follower of Jesus you have these.  You have what everybody in the world is looking for.  It just needs to be explained in terms so people can see how much they benefit from knowing God. 

3. LOVE PEOPLE.

The right motive for telling others the Good News is love.  We do it out of love.  For Christ's love compels us, (2 Corinthians 5:14).  God has never made a person that didn’t matter to Him. 

God loves them.  Jesus died for them. 

When as a believer you realize that your mission is to tell others of Christ, and one day, since God told us to do this, He’s going to say to you, “Did you bring anybody else to heaven with you?” you realize this is a major part of your life. 

When you say “God, I’m available to share the Good News with anybody, anywhere, anytime in a natural way,” life becomes a great adventure.