Our Temporary World

We will all agree that this world gives each  of us a varied amount of difficulties. Some people, it seems, have more than their share of trouble. Any hardship is a potential precursor to the doldrums taking over. The blues can set in, replacing any peace of heart that was keeping us calm on the inside, no matter what was happening on the outside. Why, we may ask ourselves, when everything was going so well, did trouble come again? For some, it seems that every time an opportunity comes knocking, they open the door, only to have it slam in their face! Disappoint piles high. Inner peace fades and disappears.

Perhaps frustrations rise, not because of what we see around us, but because of what we don’t see. It’s so easy to take on the attitude that God’s not helping, rather than reminding ourselves that God uses everything to our ultimate good. It’s easy to listen to the lies of Satan who would say, “see, He’s left you to suffer alone again,” rather than to focus on God’s promise of, “I will never leave you or forsake you.”

Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Thesalonica to encourage them in all they were going through. He wrote in II Thessalonians 3:5, “May the Lord bring you into an ever deeper understanding of the love of God and the endurance that comes from Christ.“ Isn’t it interesting to note that throughout God’s Word, there is never a promise that God will help us to avoid trials, but there are countless promises that He will equip us with everything we need to get through them.

Jesus told His followers in John 14:27, I am leaving you with a gift — peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give isn’t like the peace the world gives. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” What exactly is Jesus meaning — His peace isn’t like the peace the world gives? To get the answer, we only need look around. What do you see? Things that are temporary. Everything your eyes look at today is temporary. At some point in the future, things will break, people and nature will pass away. The whole world is in a temporary state of existence. Therefore, it stands to reason that, if we look to anything the world has to offer us, at it’s very best, it’s only temporary.

Not so with Jesus! He is eternal. Therefore, everything He has to give us is eternal,too! He can give a peace that the world can’t touch. He gives love that never fades. He gives joy that stays strong in the roughest of life’s seas.  Everything to do with Jesus is unbreakable.

We have to live and work in the world everyday, but we must be careful not to focus on anything the world has to offer as a means of sustaining our inner peace. Remember, anything the world has to offer is temporary.  When we focus on the world more than on God, then a spiritual impairment can set in, blinding us to all God has to offer us; not only to endure troubles, but to get through with strength and joy — for all our days on earth and then into eternity!