"Be Alive!"

"The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence." (Psalms 115:17)

 What a novel idea, to be alive! Seriously, there are way too many Christians that walk around and act like they are missing out on life, when it is abundant life that they should be experiencing from day to day. I know it might not sound like much, but joy is like a spell; it is characteristic of those that have nothing to loose and everything to gain; to be alive instead of dead; to have life, real life that makes you look forward to mornings and another chance to celebrate what God has done. Oh, I have things that can make me be blue, but I choose to not look at life that way; I choose to have joy be the thing that moves me, not the things that bring me down. Where does our joy come from? It comes from the Lord; from our love for the One who loved us first, who gave us eternal life, and who is going to assure that we make it into heaven, most definitely! Why would we not celebrate what He has done? If anything is holding us back, it must be something that the world has hold of in our lives; something that keeps us from feeling the freedom that comes from being free in Christ. We have been given the greatest gift that there is, live as though you know it is true...

""Lord, your discipline is good, for it leads to life and health. You restore my health and allow me to live! Yes, this anguish is good for me, for you have rescued me from death and forgiven all my sins. For the dead cannot praise you; they cannot raise their voices in praise. Those that go down to the grave can no longer hope in your faithfulness. Only the living can praise you as I do today. Each generation tells of your faithfulness to the next. Think of it -the LORD is ready to heal me! I will sing his praises with instruments every day of my life in the Temple of the LORD."" (Isaiah 38:16-20) NLT