"Lives Protected"

"I have gone astray like a lost sheep: seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments." (Psalms 119:176)

  When push comes to shove, we must believe that God is ultimately on our side: And, "If God be for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31) Never mind that life can sometimes be tuff, never mind that we might not have all the answers; He has given all that we need to know! As Paul would say, "For I am determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified." (1 Corinthians 2:2) Not that I do not believe in recovery programs, because they do work for a percentage of those that stick with their programs; but when Christ has set us free, He makes us free indeed! It really comes down to one simple understanding, that God changes lives, not man! Yes, there can be recovery and some awareness of God found in worldly programs; but this is not about being part of a program or making confessions to one another: this is about a relationship with the God that loves you, that promises to never let you go, and that gave it all to ensure there is a place for you to be with Him for all eternity! Let me tell you about these "commandments" that David is trying to tell us about, because the way I see it, there needs to be one, one that must never be done: Don't ever forget that God loves you! We might not be the greatest at loving back; we surely aren't very good at faithfully loving each other; but the one thing we must be really good at is believing that God loves us, no matter what, He loves us! There are three very distinct concepts that are shown here, three things that matter more than anything we can else in our upside-down world of failures and disappointments. The first and foremost thing is that we will fail! Get over yourself if you think that you won't, because, "All we like sheep have gone astray." Secondly, that when we are astray, we are lost sheep; not just any lost sheep, we are His sheep! And you can bet your bottom dollar, when His sheep are lost, He will find them! And lastly, if the shoe fits, wear it...

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17)