God’s love in couples for each other and faith in each other, is what holds a lifetime marriage together, and is what holds friendships and nations together in unity, by each of us respecting other’s differences, knowing God made us all different, yet loves us for who we are created to become; not for what we do, because His most holy faith (Jude 1:20-23), working through His perfect love (1 John 4:13-14), can recreate us (2 Corinthians 5:17), so we conform to Christ’s image (Romans 8:26-30), for this has always been how God sees us (Ephesians 1:3-14).
By prayerfully reading 2 Corinthians 4, with an obedient mind, hungry for God, we quickly understand why we are commanded to always look at God’s yet unseen miracle blessings He preparers daily for our benefit, yet the self-desire in us, looks at the seen destitute, deficient, and love-starved, love-hating society, staggering, struggling, dragging itself toward eternal doom.
God has done everything in His power to persuade us to know His word, believe it, obey it, live according to His will for us, and receive His bountiful love-blessings, but we ignorantly, stubbornly, refuse to believe God, His word, love, judgment, and relationship; yet God never stops trying to persuade us to use His free gift of making our own choices, to willingly choose a lifetime of close, sweet, intimate, loving, peaceful relationship with Him.
Almost daily people post how many joyous, peaceful, prosperous years of marriage they are celebrating, and some even post how many years God and them are celebrating a joyous relationship of prayer, praise, thanks, worship, and daily bible study, with ultimate appreciation.
Most holy faith (Jude 1:20-23), working through perfect love (1 John 4:7-8, 12-13), always keeps us in God’s perfect will, even though in the valleys, it may seem life is too difficult, but when we look up and see we are surrounded by gigantic mountains, we are reminded of God, who created both the gigantic surrounding mountains and the valleys we struggle through; then we know this same loving, caring, providing God, sees us and has always known everything about us (Psalm 139:7-16; Mark 6:45-52), and will never leave or desert us (Hebrews 13:5-6), for He always works for our peace, wellbeing, hope, and future in, through, and with Him (Jeremiah 29:11), because His goodness causes us to repent and come to Him (Romans 2:4).
The cross of suffering and absolute victory over disease, sickness, sin, guilt, and shame stays hidden from view as it stands high on the gigantic mountain that surrounds us way down in the valley, yet it is still there, but now empty, because Jesus, the resurrected Christ, now lives in us (Ephesians 3:17; faith working through love), for He became what we were so we could become what He is (2 Corinthians 5:20-21; 1 John 4:17), and we appreciatively thank Him for it.
God, our Creator, does not owe us anything, but we owe Him everything; and cannot live or do anything without His grace and mercy (Psalm 104:29-30; John 15:5).
Believe, love, obey, and serve the God who created us, loves us, and provides for us!
Jim Nabors
