~Of Only Temporary Value~

 A very good friend came by my house recently and it was not one of her good days. It seems she had lost her job and her prospects of finding another one is next to none. I offered her a soft drink and then sat down to visit with her for a while. I enjoyed her visit and was glad to see her and when she left I got to thinking...There are so many hurting people today. It seems as though everywhere we turn people are hurting.

I began to think of so many of my friends and the burdens they have faced in the last year or two.

 For some, the journey has been long and stormy,  they have shouldered burdens most of us cannot even carry.  Some have  bid farewell to a life-long partner; others have lost a child.  Some  have lost everything they worked their whole life to acquire.   There are those who have lost their job and stand on the very brinks of bankruptcy and the bills outnumber the bank account….People are tired!  They feel as if they cannot go on because the road is getting too rocky.

I  told my friend that I realize it is hard to see a rainbow through the darkness of storms, but let me encourage you…God is still in control. He reminds us to not look back, but look ahead.  I suppose she thought it was easy for me to say those words since I am not the one hurting, but it is true...No matter what the situation, God can see us through.

The very same hands that held the universe are the same hands that were scarred by the nails from a Roman soldier. He did it for you!   He did it for me.   So, no matter what you are facing today, there is hope. Just as scripture says things of this world are temporal."While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal." 11 Corinthians 4:18. 

Earthly possessions are things the eye can see, they fade away, they rust, sometimes stolen, and genuinely disappear.  They are "stuff" with only temporary value.

The oak tree stands for a hundred years or more and one day it becomes old, cracked and ugly.  Strong winds come and blow it over.  The life of the oak is finished.  It becomes ashes lying on the ground.

The thief enters your home and steals your most valued possessions, things that you may not be able to replace.  Gone!  The job where you worked for years closed down.  You stand a chance of losing your house, car, boat, all the things you’ve worked hard to accumulate, it’s gone!

These are things near and dear to your heart, and I pray for you, but Child, hold up your head.  Look to the things waiting for you in a home where the bank cannot repossess it, a thief cannot steal it, and it will never grow old and fade away. Keep your eyes turned toward your eternal Home.  Storm clouds will never enter the city limits of Heaven.  A million-trillion years will be just a blink of the eye and everything will stay brand new. That is the way I see it.

Have a great day in the Lord;
Mary Frances King