From my new book
Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life
“Aside from the impact
we can have on people, God uses our money to touch the lives of those around us. Through this journey, I have spent
the money I have earned at my job so that many other people— doctors, nurses,
office managers, pharmacy techs, little orange bottle manufacturers, paper bag
manufacturers, toll booth operators, parking lot workers, and janitors—can make
money at theirs. My money has helped make the lives of other people around me
better, including acquaintances and people I have never met. It is the system
we live in.
I bought a new truck,
and I was proud of the fact that it was a quality vehicle. And then the
air-conditioning went out. If you have ever been without air-conditioning in
Houston in the summer, then you can appreciate this. Even though my warranty
covered the air-conditioning, I still made about five trips to the dealer,
drove extra miles, and spent extra money. But I met people along the way. I was
nice to people who dealt with annoying people on a daily basis. I thanked
people for their help. God allowed me to experience the burden and spend my
hard-earned money to support the rest of those around me who were also made in
His image. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good
of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them” (Rom.
8:28 NLT).
We need to always
remember that life will change on us. We will endure trials, experience seasons
in our relationships and our experiences, and gain and lose things. But the way
we choose to look at these things will determine the level of peace that we
will have in our lives. God uses situations to grow us spiritually. And when we
rest in Him with the knowledge that He is in control and works everything for
our good, then we can be at peace. Then we can give ourselves over to be used
by Him for a great good in the lives of those around us.”
Chapter 3 - Family,
Friends, and Acquaintances
This reminds me of my last paper that I just turned in this week. I had a thought during our lecture on Romans Ch. 5. “For just as through the disobedience of one person the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of one the many will be made righteous” (Rom 5:19). It made me think about the fact that we are made by God, in His image, and we are called to follow Jesus. Jesus' obedience led to him dying on the cross for every human. We must be willing to dye to ourselves for every human as well. If we live our lives in a way that reflects Jesus, then others around us will see Him through us whether we realize it or not. On the other hand, if we don't live our lives according to his teachings, others will see us and become confused or misled. So we have to ask ourselves on a daily basis, which one person do we want to be? The one that leads the many to righteousness, or the one that leads the many to sin...
ReplyDeletemay we not be lukewarm water! Good comment Mr. Barrera!
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