"Reign In Life"

"They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust." (Psalms 72:9) You might want to rethink your strategy for this New Year; that is, if your strategy was self-improvement or getting into better shape. Not that those things are not good goals to set for yourself, because we could all probably use a little of both. But if you are a child of God, and you have been purchased by the blood of Christ, then those things are not to be the priorities of our lives. Don't think that I have not put a lot of thought into this, because I have; there is really no other way that we can make our lives really count, but to give it over to the Lord. The abundant life that Jesus spoke about did not involve success and being in shape, it involves sharing in the eternal life that we have been given and letting the image of Jesus shine in your life. We really don't want to be those other people that just live for themselves; not that I am trying to judge their eternal salvation, because heaven is big enough for the them also. No, it's really about hearing those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant."  The way that I see it, is that we all have a place that has been prepared for us, but not all of us will be awarded that certain place; if you can believe that there will be awards given in heaven, because I am one that believes that there will. So what does this look like, this life that involves sharing in the eternal life we have been given? Oddly enough, it really does not look much different from this life that you have been given; it's not like you give up your life and start living on the street, or become part of the Amish people. No, it's more about putting others first, and loving people the way that Jesus loves them, which involves compassion and regard for their eternity. That is what abundant life has to offer, because it is life that goes beyond this life, it involves life everlasting! Where it goes from there is totally up to the Lord, if you are truly His servant... "He said, "A nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. Before he left, he called together ten of his servants and divided among them ten pounds of silver, saying, 'Invest this for me while I am gone.' But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We do not want him to be our king,' "After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given money. He wanted to find out what their profits were. The first servant reported, 'Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!' "'Well done!' the king exclaimed. 'You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.' "The next servant reported, 'Master, I invested your money and made five times the original amount.' "'Well Done!' the king said. 'You will be governor over five cities.' "But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, 'Master, I hid your money and kept if safe. I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn't yours and harvesting crops you didn't plant.' "'You wicked servant!' the king roared. 'Your own words condemn you. If you knew that I'm a hard man who takes what isn't mine and harvests crops I didn't plant, why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.' "Then turning to the others standing nearby, the king ordered, 'Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one who has ten pounds.' "'But, master,' they said, 'he already has ten pounds!' "'Yes,' the king replied, 'and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. And as for these enemies of mine who didn't want me to be their king -bring them in and execute them right here in front of me.'" (Luke 19:12-27) NLT