HAPPY TUESDAY!
Today’s scriptures are about preparation for your eternal retirement. The fact still remains that we each will physically die, it’s inevitable. In the life of a believer, death means rest, rewards, and eternal bliss. However, while we’re still here on earth, we have work to do, in order to prepare for eternity. You may be wondering what you have to do to be prepared for eternity—one word, “work”. Let’s look at it in a worldly way—from the time you’re able to talk you enter into grade school, then on to middle and high school, and then off to college. In school you work to learn how to do basic things like reading, writing, and arithmetic, and in college you learn a trade in order to make a decent living. Once you’re done with school, you then enter into the workforce. You start a career, and you work hard to climb the ladder of success. You get health and life insurance, as well as start a 401K plan to save for your retirement. Retirement is your time of rest—your reward for working so hard over the last 30 or 40 years. You setup up a nest egg, so you can do all of the things you’ve always wanted to do, once you’re done with the rigorous work you put in most of your life.Now take this analogy and think of it in a spiritual way. We put in a lot of effort to get prepared for retirement, but we rarely invest in our “eternal retirement”. As children of God, we have a very serious job to do, and it takes consistency, hard work, faith, and lots of love to get through. However, the more we work, the more we’re investing in our eternity. Jesus once said: “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.” (Luke 10:2-3) This is such a true statement; we need more workers for the Kingdom of God. There are so many wonderful people in this world, who dedicate their life to the greater good of the Kingdom of God, but for each of them, there are probably one thousand who don’t. There is a church on every corner in America, and most of them are filled capacity on Sunday morning, but 80% of the members don’t do anything to give back to God. They aren’t working to invest in their eternal retirement, nor do they plan too.
We shouldn’t only do good things because we think we’ll lose our salvation, or have a horrible life in Heaven—the “New Jerusalem” is promised to each believer. It’s written: This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David. What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open: “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me… Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown. All who are victorious will become pillars in the Temple of my God, and they will never have to leave it...” (Rev. 3:7-8, 10-12 NLT) These are the promises of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Hallelujah! Each believer will receive, and keep, their crown of life; however, the amount of jewels that adorn that crown is what will set us apart. Your work does matter, so never stop giving back to God, because He’s already given us so much.
Why do you think Jesus always said, “I am coming back soon”, yet it’s been thousands of years since He took His permanent residence in Heaven? I think that Jesus comes sooner than we think. We each will perish from this life whether it’s during Jesus’ physical return, or through death, and it’s written when we’re absent from the body we’re present with the Lord. (2 Cor. 5:8). So we must always be prepared. Life is short, you look up tomorrow and another year has passed, and you’re quickly approaching retirement. In some way or form Jesus is “coming back to get us”, so we must diligently work to store up our treasures in Heaven. Most importantly, we must do our best to give someone who’s lost the opportunity to receive that incorruptible crown. When a Soul is saved, all of Heaven will rejoice, and your deeds won’t go unnoticed in Heaven or here on earth.
Today is the day that you should start preparing for your “eternal retirement”. Take some time to reflect—talk to God and find out what His will is for your life, and do it. If you don’t know Jesus as Lord, then you don’t have any type of retirement plan. All you need to do, in order to ensure you place in Heaven, is to confess your belief in Jesus Christ, confess your sins and repent, and then ask Jesus to be Lord of your life. If you’ll need more information, take some time to take the God Quiz right now! My favorite verse today is: There the wicked cease from troubling: and there the weary be at rest. (Job 3:17)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455566&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/broadcast/today-on-radio
http://www.intouch.org/magazine/daily-devotional
I love you!
PS
For archived devotionals, visit my blog at: http://dailydevotionalangelicchef.blogspot.com/
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