"Stay Connected"

 "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me." (John 15:4 KJV) 

  "So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. "For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay. And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away." But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved." (Hebrews 10:35-39 NLT) 

 In a short and to the point response, we must stay dependent upon Jesus! Without thinking too hard about what we are meant to do, our main focus needs to be where we must be first and foremost: Abiding in Christ Jesus. If we are not abiding in Christ, we will be lost and without hope! 

 There are some that might think there is some contradiction in what was just said, as if, being in Christ must be something that cannot be separated; so how can we be lost and without hope? I am sorry to break this to you, but there are things that matter in this life, and then there are things that get sorted out in the life to come. 

 There is one thing that I have caught onto over the years, that we might not make it through this life without messy up; and there are some that might not make it through without giving up; but if you are the property of Jesus Christ, you will somehow still show up in heaven, one way or another. That said, why would you want to be lost and without hope? It just seems like a terrible place to be, when you could be secure in Christ and filled with joy! 

 Anywho, that's my take on the matter, you can take it or leave it, that is totally up to you. There are those that faithfully serve the Lord and finish well; and then, there are those that serve themselves, and sort of smell! That is something I just made up; but you can use it if you want; you can even use it in a sermon...

"But on the judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person's work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames." (1 Corinthians 3:13-15 NLT)