Day 80: To Live is Christ (March 21)

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:21

These words ring through my head all the time.  As I walk out my time on this earth, I am constantly aching for Heaven.  I know that I will never be truly satisfied until then.  I also know that I will never feel fully home until then.

As someone who has transplanted their family from their home roots in the south, to the shockingly different culture of NE Pennsylvania, I am acutely aware of feeling longing for home.  Our family may not look like missionaries in the normal sense, but that is exactly what God told me we were to be during our time here.  It was only then, that I began to feel content with continually feeling like I’m living in a foreign land.  Don’t get me wrong, I love so many things about PA, but let’s face it everyone loves there hometown. ( I feel like I’ve already said that recently, but either way….I’m saying it again.)  We have learned to love the community we live in and to always pay attention to the natural beauty that surrounds us.  We are truly grateful to live here, still we ache for home.

Followers of Christ will never truly feel home this side of Heaven, but that’s no reason to hideout and not reach out while we are on this earth.  We were placed here for a reason.  Just like our family is in PA for a purpose, we are foreigners on this earth to bring the good news of Jesus to all that will listen.  We truly are to be salt and light to this world around us.

Are you hiding your light under a bushel and just waiting for the Lord to return?  Are you afraid that the world will hate you if you share Jesus with them?  Scripture tells us that is a possibility.  But we are also told to count all joy when we face trials of many kinds.  Never let fear of rejection stop you from sharing what you know the world needs to hear. Just make sure that your message is soaked in love.

I challenge you today.  I challenge you to share the gospel of Love with one person today.  I can’t wait to hear back about how it was received!  Please come back to this devotional post and give an update on how the Lord used you today!  Let’s go out and share the good news!!

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  James 1:2-3

“You are the salt of the earth.  But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.  “You are the light of the world.  A town built on a  hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.  Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.  Matthew 5:13-16

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish.  And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?  Esther 4:14